Table 2.
Relationship between Baseline Variables and Referral Status (medical record)
| Variables | Referred to Orthopedic Surgery (n=119) | Not referred to Orthopedic Surgery (n=557) | P-value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Demographics | |||
| Race (%) | 0.001 | ||
| African Americans | 50.4 | 35.0 | |
| White | 49.6 | 65.0 | |
| Age, yrs (M±SD) | 62.1 (8.7) | 65.0 (9.8) | 0.002 |
| Gender (%) | 0.002 | ||
| Female | 52.1 | 37.3 | |
| Male | 47.9 | 62.7 | |
| Education (%) | 0.8 | ||
| ≤ 12 yrs | 64.7 | 64.1 | |
| > 12 yrs | 35.3 | 35.9 | |
| Adequacy of income (%) | 0.01 | ||
| Uncomfortable | 78.2 | 66.8 | |
| Comfortable | 21.9 | 33.2 | |
| Employment status (%) | 0.7 | ||
| Employed | 21.0 | 19.6 | |
| Not employed | 79.0 | 80.4 | |
| Insurance coverage (%) | 0.4 | ||
| ≥2 sources | 47 | 51 | |
| ≤1 sources | 53 | 49 | |
| Recruitment site (%) | <0.0001 | ||
| County hospital-affiliated | 60.5 | 38.8 | |
| VA | 39.5 | 61.2 | |
| Clinical Factors | |||
| Body mass index, kg/m2(M±SD) | 35.7 (9.2) | 33.1 (7.9) | 0.006 |
| Index joint (% knee) | 80.7 | 76.7 | 0.3 |
| Comorbidity index (%)† | <0.0003 | ||
| ≥2 | 16 | 33 | |
| ≤1 | 84 | 67 | |
| Knee/hip pain* (M±SD) | 12.6 (3.5) | 11.4 (3.4) | 0.0006 |
| Lower extremity function* (M±SD) | 42.2 (11.3) | 39.7 (10.5) | 0.02 |
| Medical management adequate (%) | 34.5 | 31.4 | 0.5 |
| TJA appropriateness (%) | 0.003 | ||
| Appropriate | 36.1 | 22.8 | |
| Uncertain | 42.9 | 44.5 | |
| Inappropriate | 21.0 | 32.7 | |
| Health Beliefs | |||
| Benefits of TJA†(M±SD) | 10.0 (2.4) | 9.8 (2.2) | 0.3 |
| Barriers/risks from TJA†(M±SD) | 14.3 (4.1) | 14.5 (3.5) | 0.6 |
| Perceived severity of OA†(M±SD) | 11.2 (2.6) | 10.8 (2.6) | 0.1 |
| Perceived susceptibility to OA progression†(M±SD) | 18.1 (3.8) | 17.5 (3.5) | 0.08 |
Abbreviations: OA = osteoarthritis; TJA = total joint arthroplasty; VA = Veterans Administration
*
From the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index, ranges for the scales are 0-20 for pain and 0-68 for function; greater scores indicate more severe pain/dysfunction
†
From the Arthritis-Related Health Belief Instrument; greater scores indicating heightened perception of the target construct.