Study Summary

Three randomized controlled trials involving 224 patients undergoing lower limb arthroplasty (lateral unicompartmental knee replacement, total knee arthroplasty, and total hip arthroplasty). Early outpatient physiotherapy was initiated within the first week after surgery in two trials and within two weeks of discharge in one trial, while delayed physiotherapy commenced 3–6 weeks postoperatively. The outcomes were pain, physical function, and quality of life, assessed across short-term (≤12 weeks), medium-term (12 weeks–6 months), and long-term (>6 months) follow-up. Overall, the results of the study revealed no significant differences between early and delayed outpatient physiotherapy for pain, physical function, or quality of life at any follow-up interval. Effect sizes were negligible, and certainty of evidence ranged from very low to low. These findings suggest that routine early outpatient physiotherapy does not confer additional benefit over delayed initiation following lower limb arthroplasty.