ArticleBMC health services research2026
Preferences for postoperative exercise in patients after total hip or knee arthroplasty: a discrete choice experiment.
Article in BMC health services research, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
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
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
9 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundPostoperative exercise is associated with important benefits for patients undergoing total hip or knee arthroplasty, yet adherence to prescribed exercise programs remains suboptimal. Understanding patient preferences is essential for designing patient-centered interventions. This study aimed to assess patient preferences for postoperative rehabilitation exercise programs and determine the relative importance of specific program attributes.
methodsFrom March to July 2025, we conducted a cross-sectional survey using a discrete choice experiment (DCE) design at the Department of Joint Surgery, First Affiliated Hospital of the University of Science and Technology of China. A total of 295 patients who had undergone primary elective THA or TKA were included. The survey was administered from postoperative day 2 onwards, at which point participants had already commenced rehabilitation. Participants were asked to choose between hypothetical rehabilitation scenarios defined by five attributes: pain severity experienced during rehabilitation exercises, presence of a healthcare provider, exercise intensity, frequency, and duration. Conditional logit and mixed logit models were employed to estimate preference weights and investigate preference heterogeneity across subgroups.
resultsPain severity during rehabilitation exercises was identified as the most critical determinant of choice, with patients strongly preferring mild or moderate pain over severe pain (OR: 2.41, 95% CI: 1.76-3.07 and OR: 3.84, 95% CI: 2.88-4.79, respectively). This was followed by the presence of a healthcare provider (OR: 1.44, 95% CI: 1.24-1.63) and exercise intensity. Patients expressed a strong preference for rehabilitation programs characterized by mild-to-moderate pain, professional guidance, and moderate exercise intensity. Conversely, exercise frequency and duration had a relatively limited impact on decision-making. Subgroup analyses stratified by gender and age showed largely consistent preference patterns across populations, with variations in effect magnitude.
conclusionsPatients prioritize safety-driven rehabilitation protocols that balance functional recovery with physical comfort, specifically favoring effective pain management and professional support. These findings provide empirical evidence to guide the development of patient-centered, precision-oriented rehabilitation pathways that may enhance long-term adherence and clinical outcomes.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
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.