Journal of Joint Surgery and Research · Published 2025-07-30 · DOI 10.1016/j.jjoisr.2025.07.001
Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate chronic post-surgical pain (CPSP) in patients in the 6 months after total hip arthroplasty (THA), focusing on its prevalence, contributing factors, and duration. Methods: Study subjects were 257 women who underwent THA at a single hospital. The following measures were evaluated pre-operatively and at 1, 2, and 6 months post-operatively: motion pain measured using a visual analog scale (VAS); central sensitization syndrome; pain catastrophizing; fear of movement; self-efficacy; anxiety; and depression scale. CPSP was defined as VAS ≥30 mm at 6 months post-operatively, and patients were dichotomized into CPSP and non-CPSP groups. The results were compared in a two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with presence and timing of CPSP as factors. Results: The incidence of CPSP was 5.1%, and the CPSP group was significantly older than the non-CPSP group. ANOVA showed that the VAS was significantly higher in the CPSP group at 1, 2, and 6 months post-operatively compared with the non-CPSP group. Furthermore, the VAS of the CPSP group was significantly higher, and it was worse at 6 months than at 1 month post-operatively. Conclusions: In this Japanese cohort, the incidence of CPSP after THA was lower than that reported in international studies. Although initial pain relief was observed, some patients experienced worsening pain from around 1 month post-operatively. This finding suggests the importance of timely interventions during this subacute period to help prevent the progression of CPSP.
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