Joint replacement (primary): hip, knee and shoulder

Recommendation ID: NG157/7
Question: What are the components of a decision aid to support people referred for elective joint replacement in making decisions about their treatment (for example, the type of procedure, timing and implant choice)?
Any explanatory notes (if applicable): Full details of the research recommendation are in evidence review B: decision aids.

Why the committee were unable to make recommendations for practice

The committee agreed that decision aids can be a useful way of helping people offered joint replacement surgery understand their options and make decisions about their care. Evidence from studies of decision aids for joint replacement showed that their content varied widely, and this led the committee to question what the components of a decision aid should be. Their view is that a decision aid should not simply be a means of providing information but should actively help people to participate in making decisions about their care. Because of the wide variation in the decision aids used in the studies, it was not possible to compare them with each other. The committee were therefore unable to recommend any particular decision aid for joint replacement. To investigate the question of what defines a decision aid for elective joint replacement, the committee made a recommendation for research.

Source guidance details

Is this a recommendation for the use of a technology only in the context of research?	No
Is it a recommendation that suggests collection of data or the establishment of a register?	No
Last Reviewed	01/06/2020