title: Patients undergoing knee surgery provided accurate ratings of preoperative quality of life and function 2 weeks after surgery.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate patients' ability to recall their preoperative self-reported quality of life, function, and general health 2 weeks postoperatively.
  
  
  METHODS
  We randomized consecutive patients undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery to group I (assessments at 4 weeks preoperatively, on the day of surgery, and 2 weeks and 12 months postoperatively) or group II (assessments at 2 weeks and 12 months postoperatively). At each visit patients completed disease-specific, knee-specific, and generic health rating scales. At a median of 2 weeks postoperative (range, 0.6 to 14 weeks), patients completed questionnaires according to their recollection of their health 2 weeks before surgery.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Agreement between actual and recalled data was excellent for disease-specific (ICC(WOMET)=0.88 (95% CI 0.82-0.91), ICC(ACL-QOL)=0.86 (95% CI 0.75-0.91)), knee-specific (ICC(IKDC)=0.92 (95% CI 0.90-0.94), ICC(KOOS)=0.93 (95% CI 0.91 to 0.95), and general physical health (ICC(SF-36(PCS))=0.81 (95% CI 0.75-0.86)) instruments. Agreement for general mental health was moderate (ICC(SF-36(MCS))=0.67 (95% CI 0.58-0.75). Greater error associated with recalled ratings contributed to small increases in sample size requirements or small decreases in power to detect differences between groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patients recalled their preoperative quality of life, function, and general health at 2 weeks postoperative with sufficiently high accuracy to warrant substituting prospectively collected baseline data with recalled ratings.
authors.affiliation: School of Physical Therapy, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Western Ontario, Elborn College, Room 1438, London, Ontario N6G 1H1, Canada. dianne.bryant@uwo.ca
authors.forename: Dianne
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bryant
authors.forename: Geoff
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Norman
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Stratford
authors.forename: Robert G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Marx
authors.forename: S D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Walter
authors.forename: Gordon
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Guyatt
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D007718:Knee Injuries / Q000523:psychology* / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D011939:Mental Recall; D008875:Middle Aged; D011184:Postoperative Period; D011788:Quality of Life; D018401:Sample Size; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors