Elizabeth Hofheinz, M.P.H., M.Ed. • Wed, March 22nd, 2017

It’s a no-brainer…anyone would prefer to answer 7 survey questions as opposed to 42. Hurray for the researchers from Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) in New York, who have confirmed that a seven-question patient survey on pain, function and quality of life is a valid and efficient tool for assessing patient outcomes following revision total knee replacement (TKR).

According to the March 14, 2017 news release, “The previous commonly used knee replacement survey was 42 questions often leaving physicians with partial, unusable information. The shorter survey, known as KOOS JR. (Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score), and its hip replacement counterpart, HOOS JR., have already been adopted for Medicare’s primary total joint replacement bundled payment program. HSS’ research presented at AAOS now provides peer-reviewed data that confirms KOOS JR. is a valid outcomes measure for knee replacement surgery.”

“At HSS, we are continually improving how we measure outcomes and KOOS JR. is a direct result of these efforts,” said Alexander McLawhorn, M.D., M.B.A., an orthopedic surgeon at HSS. “We saw a need for a shorter, more patient friendly survey in an area where outcomes data are essential to improving quality of care. In fact, knee replacement revisions, which are more complex than primary knee surgery, are under-studied in this regard.”

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