The Outpatient Arthroplasty Risk Assessment is effective at identifying patients who are fit to undergo outpatient total joint arthroplasty, according to research published in the Journal of Arthroplasty
Researchers examined the medical records from 2,051 patients who underwent total joint arthroplasties performed by a single surgeon at an academic tertiary care hospital. Statistical measures were used to determine OARA score performance in the classification of successful same-day discharge. Researchers also compared preoperative OARA scores from 0 to 59 points with scores from 0 to 79.
The key details to know:
1. Mean OARA scores increased with a longer length of stay.
2. Preoperative OARA scores up to 79 points had a 98.8 percent positive predictive value, 99.3 percent specificity and 0.7 percent false positive rate.
3. Researchers concluded, "The OARA score was designed to err in the direction of medical safety, and OARA scores between zero and 79 are conservatively highly effective for identifying patients who can safely elect to undergo outpatient total joint arthroplasty."