Short-term outcomes of total knee arthroplasty performed with and without a tourniquet.

There was a significant difference in blood loss. The non-tourniquet group lost on average 32% more blood (1291 mL vs. 878 mL, p<0.001 two-tailed). We found no difference in pain, ROM, LOS, and quadriceps lag on day 2 and at discharge. There was one thromboembolic event in the tourniquet group, but the thromboembolic index of suspicion did not differ (p=0.53). With tourniquet use, women had a significantly lower day 2 maximum flexion than men (71.56° vs. 84.67°, p=0.02). In this retrospective cohort study, the results suggest that tourniquet use is associated with lower blood loss and similar postoperative pain, range of motion, quadriceps lag, length of stay, and thromboembolic risk. There might be some differences between how men and women tolerate a tourniquet, with women having worse short-term outcomes compared to men.