Despite higher costs, many doctors recommend and some patients prefer, recovery at an in-patient rehabilitation facility following total hip (THR) or total knee replacement (TKR) surgery. And yet a new study to be presented Thursday, March 16, at the 2017 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), found that even patients who live alone can recover effectively and safely at home.
“In the past, most surgeons have been reticent to discharge patients directly home after joint replacement surgery if they live by themselves; instead, opting for such patients to enter a rehab facility,” said lead author William J. Hozack, MD, an orthopaedic surgeon at The Rothman Institute and professor of orthopaedic surgery at the Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University.
