Obesity does not limit benefits of knee replacement, study shows

BMJ 2008; 337 doi: 10.1136/bmj.a1061 (Published 31 July 2008)
Cite this as: BMJ 2008;337:a1061

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  1. Roger Dobson
  1. 1Abergavenny

    Clinically obese people can benefit almost as much as anyone else from knee replacement surgery, research has shown (Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases 2008; doi 10.1136/ard.2008.093229).

    The findings show that there is little justification for policies that deny this type of surgery to obese patients on the grounds of their body mass index (BMI). The researchers report that long term improvements in physical functioning in patients who had undergone knee replacement surgery extended to patients who were clinically obese, with a BMI greater than 30.

    “There seems no justification for withholding total knee arthroplasty from obese patients solely …

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