RAPT and AM-PAC "6-Clicks": Do They Correlate on Predicting Discharge Destination After Total Joint Arthroplasty?

Abstract

Background: The Risk Assessment and Prediction Tool (RAPT) and the Activity Measure for Post-Acute Care "6-Clicks" Mobility Score (AM-PAC) are validated discharge planning tools for patients undergoing total hip arthroplasty (THA) and total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Planning for discharge with these tools considers very different factors and it is important to determine if they relate. Purpose: We sought to determine whether the preoperative RAPT score would correlate with postoperative AM-PAC score for predicting discharge destination for THA and TKA populations. Secondarily, we sought to examine whether the AM-PAC and RAPT scores would remain statistically significant predictors of discharge destination despite covariates. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was performed for patients who underwent THA or TKA from January 2020 to December 2022 at a specialty orthopedic hospital. Primary variables included the RAPT score, the AM-PAC score, and discharge disposition. Correlation between AM-PAC and RAPT scores was tested using Pearson's correlation coefficient, and association between both scores and discharge destination was tested using chi-square tests and multivariable logistic regression. Results: Our comparison of AM-PAC scores and RAPT scores found a statistically significant, positive correlation in both THA and TKA patients. Regression analysis found that increased RAPT and AM-PAC scores resulted in higher odds of being discharged home for both populations, after adjusting for all other variables. In both cohorts, patients discharged to a facility were more likely to be female, be over the age of 70 years, have Medicare/Medicaid insurance, and have a higher number of preoperative social work visits or any incidence of an intraoperative or hospital complication. Conclusions: This retrospective study found that RAPT score correlated with AM-PAC score for predicting discharge destination for elective THA and TKA populations, suggesting that these scores may be predictors of home discharge destination even when accounting for covariates. Further study is recommended.

Keywords: AM-PAC “6-clicks”; RAPT; arthroplasty; discharge destination; discharge planning; preoperative physical therapy; rehabilitation; risk assessment.