Rehabilitation following total hip arthroplasty evaluation over short follow-up time: randomized clinical trial

Hip osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative disease, and total hip arthroplasty (THA) is one of the surgical procedures of choice to improve the OA patient's quality of life. Without a rehabilitation program, THA patients will develop functional limitations. A randomized double-blind trial was performed between July 2009 and October 2011 to compare in a short follow-up time two groups of patients who underwent THA for OA. The THA protocol (THAP) group received verbal instructions and physiotherapy exercise demonstrations, and the THA physiotherapy care protocol (THAPCP) group received the same verbal instructions and demonstrations associated with daily exercise practice guided by a physiotherapist. The outcomes that were assessed preoperatively and 15 d postoperatively in 106 patients were muscle strength force, goniometry, Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short Form Health Survey, and Merle d'Aubigné and Postel score. Higher muscle strength force scores and degrees in range of motion were found in the THAPCP group. Higher improvements were also observed for the THAPCP group compared with the THAP group in the Merle d'Aubigné and Postel score. At the end of the follow-up period, the intervention in the THAPCP group improved functional capacity, quality of life, mobility, muscle strength, goniometry, and pain. It appears to be a safe tool for accelerating recovery in THA patients. ClinicalTrials.gov; NCT01491048.