Gait, quality of life, and their association following total hip arthroplasty.
OBJECTIVE
Total hip arthroplasty (THA) surgery is one of the most common orthopedic procedures performed on individuals with end-stage osteoarthritis of the hip. This study: () compared temporal spatial gait parameters and quality of life (QOL) scores of individuals with unilateral total hip arthroplasty (THA) to those of healthy older adults ages 65 to 85 years and (2) explored the relationship between the variables.


METHODS
Three dimensional motion analysis was used to calculate walking velocity, cadence, stride length, single support time, and double support time. All participants completed the Medical Outcome Survey Short Form 36 Health Survey (SF 36(R)) to measure health related QOL subscales.


RESULTS
The individuals with THA walked slower (P = .005) with a longer double support phase (P = .02) and rated physical functioning (P < .0001 ) and role physical scores (P = .001 ) lower than the healthy older adults. For all subjects combined, a positive correlation was identified between walking velocity and physical functioning (P = .001 ), role-physical scores (P = .001 ) and bodily pain (P = .001 ); a negative correlation was identified between double support time and role physical score (P = .002) and bodily pain (P =.002).


CONCLUSIONS
Individuals who undergo THA surgery have gait deficits that relate to physical subscales of the SF36(R). These findings provide guidance for physical therapy interventions focused on gait performance after THA.
Sliwinski
Martha
M
Columbia University, Physical Therapy Program, 71 0 W. 68th Street, 8th Floor, New York, NY 10027, USA. ms21 84@columbia.edu
Sisto
Sue
S
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D019644:Arthroplasty, Replacement, Hip; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D005684:Gait / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015207:Osteoarthritis, Hip / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D011788:Quality of Life; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome