Influence of obesity on outcome after knee arthroscopy

Purpose: To compare the clinical outcomes in overweight women with those of a group of normal-weight women 4 to 11 years after arthroscopic debridement of the knee. Methods: A questionnaire containing the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), the short form health survey SF-36, and a survey regarding satisfaction with surgery was mailed to 121 patients. Questionnaire data were supplemented by chart review. Results: Ninety patients (74%) returned completed questionnaires. All scored significantly lower than age-matched normative data on all domains of the SF-36. The normal-weight group had better scores than the obese group, particularly in the physical functioning (P = .01), role physical (P = .05), mental health (P = .11), and role emotional (P = .11) domains. They were also more satisfied with their surgery (P < .05), more likely to indicate that they would have the surgery again, and had fewer recurrences of knee pain (P < .05). Conclusions: Overweight women have poorer outcomes related to quality of life and satisfaction with surgery than normal-weight women. Level of Evidence: Level III, Case control study.