Arthritis includes more than 100 inflammatory and degenerative conditions that cause pain, stiffness, and swelling in the joints. The two most prevalent types of arthritis are osteoarthritis (OA), a degenerative joint disease that develops over time, and rheumatoid arthritis (RA), an autoimmune disease in which the immune system mistakenly attacks the joints. Over 43 million Americans have arthritis, and that number is expected to increase as baby boomers age. Joint replacement surgery is usually the last resort treatment for people with arthritis. Now research reports that knee replacements will increase by 673% and hip replacements will increase by 174% by the year 2030.
The study, presented at the 73rd annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgery in Chicago, projected the number of hip and knee replacement surgeries that will be performed through the year 2030. The researchers based the projections on historical procedure rates from 1990 to 2003, combined with population projections from the U.S. Census Bureau. The number of joint replacement surgeries are expected to increase due to an aging population with arthritis, rising rates of obesity and the trend toward baby boomers remaining physically active, which place demands on the joints.
The researchers found that that the number of surgeries for first-time total knee replacement will rise to 3.48 million and first-time total hip replacements to 572,000 by the year 2030. The repair or replacement of previous joint replacement surgeries is called revision joint replacement. Findings also revealed that knee replacement revision surgeries are projected to double by 2015 and hip replacement revisions will double by 2026. The massive demand for joint replacement surgeries may overwhelm supply, so that there may not be enough orthopaedic surgeons to perform the surgeries,
"There's definitely going to be a huge need for more orthopaedic surgeons" says researcher Steven M. Kurtz, director of Exponent Inc. consulting firm and associate professor at Drexel University's School of Biomedical Engineering, in a news release. "If the massive expected demand for total joint replacement is not planned for before 2030, patients may end up waiting a long time for a new hip or knee."
REFERENCES:
1. Total knee and hip replacement surgery projections show meteoric rise by 2030. Orthopaedic procedures set to continue gaining widespread acceptance as means to restore quality-of-life. American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, News Release, March 24, 2006:
http://www6.aaos.org/pemr/news/press_release_print.cfm?PRNumber=442
Posted by Elaine Gavalas on August 1, 2006 01:55 PM
