What are the cutoff scores for a problematic knee on the Symptoms subscale for KOOS?

• A. Symptoms <85.7
• B. Symptoms <90.0
• C. Symptoms <80.0
• D. Symptoms <88.5

Answer: (A)

When using KOOS, a cutoff on a subscale helps tell when symptoms are clinically meaningful enough to label the knee as problematic. The Symptoms subscale measures the frequency and severity of knee symptoms, with higher scores meaning fewer symptoms and better status. Researchers determine a threshold that best separates knees with problematic symptoms from those without, using analyses that balance sensitivity and specificity.

A threshold around 85.7 on the Symptoms subscale is commonly cited: if the score is below 85.7, the knee is considered to have problematic symptoms; if it is 85.7 or higher, symptoms are not deemed problematic by that criterion. This value arises from validated studies and reflects a practical cutpoint for distinguishing affected vs. less-affected knees. The other values listed don’t align with the typical validated cutoff in the same way, so 85.7 is the best-supported threshold for flagging a problematic knee on this subscale.