Knee Replacement May Save Lives
The US has more knee replacements per capita than any other nation. Is that because we want 85-year-olds to be able to stay on the ski slopes? More serious issues may be involved.
In a sweeping study of Medicare records, researchers from Philadelphia and Menlo Park, Calif., examined the effects of joint replacement among nearly 135,000 patients with new diagnoses of osteoarthritis of the knee from 1997 to 2009. About 54,000 opted for knee replacement; 81,000 did not.
Three years after diagnosis, the knee replacement patients had an 11 percent lower risk of heart failure. And after seven years, their risk of dying for any reason was 50 percent lower.
More from Tara Parker-Pope in The New York Times.
It is easy to see how knee replacement is associated with longevity. People who can walk are more active –which is good for your health. I also suspect that knee replacement is associated with fewer falls, which can be serious.
I still think it’s the ski slopes.
If they are going to correlate knee replacement with lower risk of heart failure, they might want to look at hip replacement and other issues that affect mobility as well……perhaps in an effort to create a bigger picture of what procedures are going to contribute the most toward saving lives.
My dad had both knees done and then died from cancer 3 years later:(
Hi John,
Healthline is running a knee replacement stories contest & entrants are eligible to win a $75 American Express Giftcard. We invite you to share this contest with your followers, clients, patients, & whomever else you know that has experiences with knee replacement surgery. Any tips, stories, or insights could make a big difference for someone else considering this life-changing event. Entries must be received by 4/1/12 to be eligible to win.
For more information visit: http://www.healthline.com/health/total-knee-replacement-surgery/stories
Warm Regards,
Tracy