2025 Volume 4 Issue 2 Pages 114-121
Objective: In this preliminary study, we investigated the effectiveness of telerehabilitation in 99 outpatients who underwent lower extremity joint replacement surgery, to address the growing need for cost-effective healthcare solutions that facilitate maintenance and improvement of physical function, activity levels, and daily living capabilities post-discharge.
Methods: The telerehabilitation intervention was task-oriented, involving patients performing exercises selected by an assigned therapist for approximately 20 minutes five times a week to achieve specific goals. Propensity score matching was used to compare 19 patients who received telerehabilitation interventions with 19 control group patients.
Results: Significant improvements in endurance and exercise tolerance were uncovered within the intervention group, as evidenced by the outcomes of the 6-minute walk test. Moreover, remarkable improvement in psychological aspects was observed, with significant progress in pain self-efficacy and joint function, measured by the Pain Self-Efficacy Questionnaire and the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index, respectively.
Conclusion: These findings highlight the potential role of telerehabilitation in strengthening physical rehabilitation outcomes and its positive effects on psychological well-being, which underscores the usefulness of this intervention as a comprehensive postoperative care strategy for patients who undergo joint replacement surgery. Future large-scale studies with long-term follow-up are warranted to validate the aforementioned findings. This preliminary study provides a foundation for further development and clinical application of telerehabilitation.
