Bilateral staged total knee arthroplasty in obese patients

Introduction The purpose of this study was to compare the clinical and functional results and complications associated with staged bilateral total knee arthroplasty (TKA) performed 4–11 days apart during a single hospitalization in patients who were obese and patients who were not obese. Methods We retrospectively evaluated 48 (96 knees) patients who were obese and divided into two groups based on their body mass indices (BMI). Morbidly obese patients (group A1, BMI ≥ 40 kg/m 2 ) consisted of 21 patients (42 knees), and obese patients (group A2, BMI ≥ 30 kg/m 2 ) consisted of 27 patients (54 knees). The control group (group B, BMI 0.05). No significant differences in preoperative or postoperative Knee Society score, and functional score could be demonstrated between the three groups ( P > 0.05). Both obese and nonobese patients showed improvements in pain and function from pre-surgery to a minimum 2 years follow-up. Conclusion Results of bilateral staged TKAs in obese patients have low complication and high success rates and increased BMI has no negative effect on the early outcome. Bilateral staged TKA might be a good treatment alternative for the improvement of the patient’s quality of life and functional and clinical outcomes.