• Nickelas Huffman, Ignacio Pasqualini, Shujaa T Khan, Alison K Klika, John P McLaughlin, Carlos A Higuera-Rueda, Matthew E Deren, and Nicolas S Piuzzi.
• Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH, 44195, USA.
• Arch Orthop Trauma Surg. 2024 Dec 21; 145 (1): 8080.

IntroductionThere is conflicting data in the literature regarding the clinical utility of wearable devices. This study examined the association between patient reported outcome measures (PROMs) and step and stair flight counts obtained from wearable devices in postoperative total hip arthroplasty (THA) patients.MethodsData was collected from a multicenter prospective longitudinal cohort study from October 2018 to February 2022. A smartphone-based platform with smartwatch was utilized for collection of daily step and stair flight counts. Subjects (N = 1644) completed the Hip disability and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score for Joint Replacement (HOOS JR) and numerical rating scale (NRS) pain scores preoperatively and at 1 and 3 months postoperatively. Patients who reported living in a multi-level home (N = 931) were included in analysis of stair flight counts. Pearson correlation coefficients were calculated to determine correlations between step and stair flight counts with NRS pain and HOOS JR scores.ResultsStep counts demonstrated a weak negative correlation to NRS pain scores at preoperative (r = - 0.15, p < 0.0001), 1-month (r = - 0.15, p < 0.0001), and 3-months follow-up (r = - 0.06, p = 0.05). Step counts demonstrated a weak positive correlation with HOOS JR scores at preoperative (r = 0.16, p < 0.0001), 1-month (r = 0.15, p < 0.0001), and 3-months (r = 0.13, p < 0.0001). Stair flight counts demonstrated a weak negative correlation with NRS pain preoperatively (r = - 0.19, p < 0.0001) and at 1-month (r = - 0.11, p = 0.003). Stair flight counts positively correlated with HOOS JR scores at preoperative (r = 0.24, p < 0.0001), 1-month (r = 0.15, p < 0.0001), and 3-months (r = 0.09, p = 0.02).ConclusionThe utilization of wearable technology can enhance the evaluation of patient outcomes after THA, primarily due to the observed correlation between data collected from wearables and PROMs. Our study highlights the importance of the use of objective data, in addition to subjective patient reported data, when analyzing postoperative patient progress, which propels forward the field of postoperative THA patient care.© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.

23 keywords...

hide…