Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, Vol 79-A, No. 6, June, 1997
Author: Mark R. Brinker, MD, PeterJ. Lund, MD, Robert L. Barrack, MD
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Abstract: Four knee-scoring systems were used
to evaluate 200 adult subjects who had no history
of injury, abnormality, or treatment of the knees,
hips, lower extremities, or spine. All subjects were
in the age-range (fifty to 100 years; average, 65.5
years) typical of candidates for total knee
replacement. In addition to a physical
examination, complete demographic data were
collected for each subject. The knee scores were
normalized by dividing the observed score by the
maximum possible score. The average normalized
total knee score was 91 per cent (range, 22 to 100
per cent) according to the knee score of The
Hospital for Special Surgery, 95 per cent (range,
10 to 100 per cent) according to the system of
Hungerford and Kenna, 89 per cent (range, -7.75
to 100 per cent) according to a modification of the
scoring system of The Knee Society, and 95 per
cent (range, 26.5 to 100 per cent) according to the
system of Hofmann et al. Demographic variables
that had a significant negative correlation with the
knee scores included advanced age (particularly of
eighty-five years or more), a family income below
the poverty level, and two major medical
conditions or more.
Observed differences in knee scores between
different study groups that have not been matched
for various clinically relevant factors are at least
as likely to represent differences in the patient
populations as they are to represent differences in
the operative technique or the design of the
implant. |