SynthesisFrontiers in medicine2025
Prehabilitation is effective in relieving pain after knee arthroplasty, but has little effect on length of stay and knee function: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
Synthesis in Frontiers in medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed.
- Vacuum-Compression Therapy as an Adjunct to Physical Therapy in Patients with Knee Osteoarthritis: A Pilot Comparative Study.Bioengineering (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Redefining Outcomes in Robotic-Guided Knee Arthroplasty through Purposeful Rehabilitation.Journal of orthopaedic case reports · 2026Article
- Experiences and Perceptions of Patients Participating in Prehabilitation and Early Rehabilitation for Hip and Knee Arthroplasty: A Systematic Review and Narrative Synthesis of Qualitative Evidence.Patient preference and adherence · 2026Review
- Impact of a multimodal prehabilitation program on postoperative recovery in patients undergoing total laparoscopic hysterectomy and its clinical effects on reducing the risk of venous thromboembolism occurrence.Frontiers in oncology · 2026Article
- Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Purpose: The efficacy of preoperative rehabilitation (prehabilitation) for patients undergoing knee arthroplasty remains controversial. Prehabilitation is defined as the implementation of functional exercises, health education, and preemptive medication before surgery to improve postoperative outcomes, typically compared to conventional care protocols. Existing studies have reported inconsistent results regarding its benefits. This meta-analysis aims to evaluate the impact of prehabilitation on hospital length of stay, postoperative pain, and knee function in patients undergoing knee arthroplasty. Methods: PubMed, Cochrane, Embase, and Web of Science were searched from their establishment to 16 January 2024. An additional 19 articles were obtained by reading the relevant literature or by a reference search. All clinical randomized controlled trials (RCTs) related to the prehabilitation of total knee arthroplasty were included. All trials were analyzed by two independent reviewers, and the resulting data were analyzed using a random effects model and processed using Review Manager5.4 statistical software. The main outcome measures are as follows: visual analog scale(VAS), knee flexion and extension, and length of stay (LOS). Results: A total of 18 articles, encompassing 21 RCTs with 2,150 participants (1,167 in the prehabilitation group and 983 in the control group), were included. The analysis revealed that prehabilitation significantly reduced postoperative pain at 1, 3, and 6 months, as evidenced by lower VAS scores. Improvements in knee function were noted in terms of knee extension at 1 month and knee flexion at 3 months postoperatively. However, no significant difference was observed in the length of hospital stay. Conclusion: Prehabilitation before knee arthroplasty effectively alleviates postoperative pain and partially enhances knee function in the early postoperative period but does not significantly affect the length of hospital stay.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.