title: Health-related quality of life after total hip replacement: a Taiwan study.
abstract: This study applied the generalised estimating equations (GEE) in a large-scale prospective cohort study of predictors of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in a Taiwan population. The study population included all patients who had undergone primary total hip replacement (THR) performed between March 1998 and December 2002 by either of two orthopaedic surgeons in two hospitals. The SF-36 was used in pre- and postoperative assessments of 335 patients. Young age, male gender, minimal comorbidity, use of epidural anaesthesia, lack of readmission within the previous 30 days, and higher preoperative functional status were positively associated with HRQoL (P < 0.05). Patients should be advised that their postoperative HRQoL may depend not only on their postoperative health care but also on their preoperative functional status. These analytical results should be applicable to other Taiwan hospitals and to other countries with similar social and cultural practices.
authors.affiliation: Graduate Institute of Healthcare Administration, Kaohsiung Medical University, 100 Shih-Chun 1st Road, Kaohsiung, 807, Taiwan, Republic of China.
authors.forename: Hon-Yi
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Shi
authors.forename: Mahmud
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Culbertson
authors.forename: Je-Ken
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Jun-Wen
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Herng-Chia
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Chiu
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D019644:Arthroplasty, Replacement, Hip / Q000523:psychology* / Q000534:rehabilitation; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006621:Hip Joint / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D020127:Recovery of Function; D013624:Taiwan; D016896:Treatment Outcome