How long will my hip or knee replacement last?
If you’ve been advised you need knee or hip replacement surgery, one of the most important questions you’ll want to be answered is how long your replacement hip or knee will last. Your surgeon is quite likely to comment that it will definitely last for the rest of your life, but may not be able to provide you with the research to back this statement up.
The good news is that Bristol University and the National Joint Registry in the UK have produced evidenced research to back this up, and this is summarised below:
About the research
The research into how long hip or knee replacement actually lasts looked at thousands of different cases of surgery in the past 25 years across six different countries and provides the first academic study into the longevity of replacement knees and hips.
The entire study can be read online and concluded that eight out of ten people undergoing hip or knee replacements still have them in place 25 years later.
Dr Jonathan Evans was the Lead Research Fellow for this study and commented that more than two million knee and hip replacements have been carried out in the UK alone since the year 2003. He said many patients ask how long their replacements will last but up until now there has been no definitive answer because all previous research has been on a small sample group. He added: “At best, the NHS has only been able to say how long replacements are designed to last, rather than referring to actual evidence from multiple patients’ experiences of joint replacement surgery. Given the improvement in technology and techniques in the last 25 years, we expect that hip or knee replacements put in today may last even longer.”
Given the fact that life expectancy in the UK is much longer, it’s important for patients and surgeons to know how long hip or knee replacements will last, as this makes surgical decisions far easier. If you’re located in or around Manchester or Cheshire and seeking the specialist hip or knee surgery offered by one of the most highly regarded local private practitioners, don’t hesitate to get in touch with Dr Arun Kumar to find out more.
