Surgical procedure and outcome measurement
postoperative pain, pain
RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS
Seventy patients who were scheduled for primary SBTKA were assessed for eligibility. Of those, four patients were excluded (two patients declined to participate in the study, one patient had previous knee surgery, and another patient had underlying rheumatoid arthritis). The remaining 66 patients were formally enrolled in the study (Fig. 
Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) diagram showing the enrollment and flow of patients in this studyIn the conventional group, the distal femoral bone cut was made after insertion of the intramedullary reference guide into the intercondylar notch, after which the opening of the intramedullary canal was occluded with a bone plug before prosthesis implantation [After surgery, a non-compressive dressing was applied to all knees [The intensity of postoperative pain at rest after physical therapy was assessed by VAS pain score (range: 0–10). Total morphine use and length of hospital stay were also collected. All postoperative outcomes were recorded by a group of assessors who were blinded to the randomization and the study intervention.