Journal of evaluation in clinical practice
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Costs and effectiveness of pre- and post-operative home physiotherapy for total knee replacement: randomized controlled trial.
To assess the effectiveness of pre- and post-operative physiotherapy at home for unilateral total knee replacement (TKR). ⋯ Although home physiotherapy was as effective and as acceptable to patients as hospital outpatient physiotherapy for unilateral TKR, it was more expensive. Additional pre-operative home physiotherapy did not improve patient-perceived health outcomes.
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To see whether net mortalities increase during and after reductions in medical services, either at average weekends, or at Christmas when pressure from illness is unusually high. ⋯ No adverse effect on mortality was apparent within 2 days from reduction in medical services at weekends. However, respiratory deaths accelerated sharply after reduction in elective and emergency admissions at Christmas, when rates of infection and mortality from respiratory disease were high. Implications for medical services during respiratory epidemics are discussed.