BACKGROUND: Obesity is an increasingly prevalent comorbidity that confers greater risks of postoperative complications following total joint arthroplasty, underscoring the need for viable preoperative weight loss. The objective of this study was to compare the risk of 90-day adverse events in patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty (TKA) following bariatric surgery versus treatment with glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RA).
METHODS: A retrospective review of a national research network from May 1, 2005, to February 12, 2025, identified patients undergoing TKA with bariatric surgery or GLP-1 RA prescriptions in the 18 months preceding their joint arthroplasty. Following propensity score matching, 4,652 patients were selected for comparison in both the bariatric surgery and GLP-1 RA cohorts. For each cohort, patient demographics, 90-day orthopaedic and surgical complications, readmissions, and emergency department visits were collected. Statistical differences in relative risk (RR) between each complication were calculated with t-tests and Chi-square tests.
RESULTS: In the 90-day postoperative period, patients who underwent bariatric surgery before TKA experienced greater rates of periprosthetic fractures (RR: 2.4; P = 0.016), periprosthetic joint infections (RR: 1.7; P = 0.002), revision surgeries (RR: 1.926; P = 0.005), cardiac events (RR: 1.255; P < 0.001), readmissions (RR: 1.316; P = 0.015), and emergency department visits (RR: 1.2; P < 0.001).
CONCLUSIONS: A significantly increased risk of postoperative events was identified in patients who underwent bariatric surgery. These findings, along with existing literature, suggest that GLP-1 RA use may be a preferred option for preoperative weight loss optimization in TKAs. Overall, greater clinical understanding is provided for this drug and may inform surgical decision-making regarding weight management strategies and their associated risks.
