P231 - User-friendliness of a novel dedicated knee joint distraction device: experiences from clinical practice
Abstract
Purpose
Knee joint distraction (KJD) is a surgical technique that can postpone arthroplasty in younger knee osteoarthritis patients (<65 years) for a prolonged time. In absence of dedicated devices intended for knee distraction, this procedure has thus far been performed with general purpose external fixation devices. The demonstrated clinical benefits of KJD raised a clinical demand for a dedicated device (DD), including increased user-friendliness and decreased treatment burden. As such, a dedicated distraction device was developed and made available for clinical application. Here for the first time, user-friendliness is compared between the developed DD and previously used proof-of-concept (PoC) device.
Methods and Materials
Patients were treated with either the PoC (n=22) or DD (n=22). For both devices, the surgical technique was identical: fixation to the tibia and femur with 8 bone pins (figure 1) and 5 mm distraction for 6 weeks. The intervention duration when placing the device (time between first incision and the surgeon being finished) was registered for these patients. After treatment, patients were asked to fill out a questionnaire about user-friendliness of the device during treatment, consisting of 25 questions on difficulties performing activities regarding clothing, sleeping, device care, daily activities, movement and complications. Intervention duration and questionnaire answers were compared between groups.
Results
Intervention duration was on average shorter for the DD (44 vs 56 minutes PoC; P<0.001), reflecting user-friendliness for surgeon and patient. 24 Patients (16 PoC, 18 DD) completed the questionnaire. Patient user-friendliness of the DD was higher rated for 7 questions (all p<0.05) and similar to the PoC device for the remaining questions (all p>0.01). Results of the 3 most important questions (as indicated by patients’ remarks) are provided in figure 2.
Conclusion
The dedicated KJD device provides user-friendly equipment for both clinicians and patients and as such contributes to implementation of KJD as treatment for end-stage knee osteoarthritis.
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