High-Volume Doctors Have Fewer Post Op Problems
It makes sense that the more often you do something, the better you get at it. This is also true for doctors who perform operations to replace knee joints…
…Researchers at half a dozen major medical centers looked at Medicare claims for patients who had a total knee replacement (TKR). They found that patients had better results when managed by doctors who do a high volume of TKRs. Their patients had fewer problems after the operation.
…The authors found that the death rate is 30 percent lower in hospitals where TKRs are done routinely. The risk of heart attack and lung clots was also lower in these high volume hospitals. Complications for any medical problem were lower in high-volume hospitals. Results showed that number of years in practice were not as important as the number of TKRs done each year.
Jeffrey N. Katz, MD, MS, et al. Association Between Hospital and Surgeon Procedure Volume and the Outcomes of Total Knee Replacement. In The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery. September 2004. Vol. 86-A. No. 9. Pp.1909-1916.