Trends and determinants of length of stay and hospital reimbursement following knee and hip replacement

Trends and determinants of length of stay and hospital reimbursement following knee and hip replacement: evidence from linked primary care and NHS hospital records from 1997 to 2014.
Burn E et al
BMJ Open. 2018 Jan 27;8(1):e019146. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2017-019146

• Analysis of data for length of stay and hospital reimbursement following knee (TKR) and hip (THR) replacement (primary and revisions) from 1997 to 2014. 
• Length of stay (days) for revision TKR (n=505) length of stay fell from 29.8 (17.5 to 50.5) to 11.0 (8.3 to 14.6) and from 18.3 (11.6 to 28.9) to 12.5 (9.3 to 16.8) for revision THR (n=633), but no significant reduction in reimbursement was estimated. 
• Patient profiles have remained broadly stable over time. The observed reductions appear to be mostly explained by improved efficiency.