Prospective Assessment of Sleep Quality Before and After Primary Total Joint Replacement

Abstract

Sleep disruption is a common, yet rarely addressed, complaint among patients who have undergone total joint arthroplasty (TJA). This study assessed sleep quality before and after primary TJA. A total of 105 patients who underwent primary total hip arthroplasty (THA) or total knee arthroplasty (TKA) prospectively completed questionnaires during the preoperative, early postoperative, and late postoperative periods. The survey included the Epworth Sleepiness Scale, current sleeping habits, and patient perspectives of sleep quality and duration. In the early postoperative period (4.7±2.0 weeks), patients reported significant increases in sleep disturbance as denoted by increased length of time to fall asleep (P=.006) and mean nightly awakenings (P=.002) compared with the preoperative baseline. At late postoperative follow-up (40.8±19.5 weeks), patients' sleep quality subsequently improved above the preoperative baseline. Approximately 40% of patients tried a new sleeping method postoperatively, the most common being new pillow placement. No significant differences in pre- or postoperative sleeping trends were noted between THA and TKA patients. These findings suggest transient sleep disturbance is common in the early postoperative period, with subsequent improvement by 10-month follow-up after a primary TJA. Given the growing importance of patient satisfaction in health care systems, orthopedic surgeons must manage patients' expectations while working with them to optimize sleep quality after TJA. A multimodal approach with preoperative counseling, early postoperative sleep modifications, and possibly preemptive use of medications may improve transient sleep disturbance among TJA patients. [Orthopedics. 2017; 40(4):e636-e640.].