Evaluating Self-Directed Rehabilitation for Knee and Hip Arthroplasty During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Multicenter Study

The COVID-19 pandemic has triggered the adoption of new technologies to reduce the need for in-person physical therapy (PT). This study evaluated the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on PT utilization and outcomes of patients prescribed a smartphone-based care management platform (sbCMP) for self-directed rehabilitation (SDR). A secondary analysis of data collected in a multicenter, prospective cohort trial investigating a mobile platform to deliver SDR after arthroplasty was performed. Patients who used the sbCMP for 2 weeks prior to undergoing partial knee arthroplasty (PKA), total knee arthroplasty (TKA), or total hip arthroplasty (THA) and provided 3 months of post-operative data were included. Use of adjunct PT at 3 months, step counts, and KOOS JR and HOOS JR scores were compared during the early versus late pandemic period. The cohort data was available for 1665 patients. Use of SDR without adjunct PT was higher in the early period of the COVID-19 pandemic in TKA (35.3% vs. 27.6%, <i>p</i> = 0.03) and THA (72.5% vs. 59.3%, <i>p</i> < 0.001), but not in the PKA cohort (58.9% vs. 53.3%, <i>p</i> = 0.53). Post-operative step counts improved at 3 months compared to pre-operative levels in all procedure types. Change in HOOS JR and KOOS JR scores from pre-operative to post-operative levels were similar by pandemic period in all cohorts. Use of SDR increased early during the COVID-19 pandemic, corresponding to pandemic restrictions, without negatively impacting patient outcomes. SDR facilitated via a sbCMP may be beneficial for patients unable or unwilling to participate in traditional PT visits.