Older, Heavier Americans Fuel a $4 Billion Knee Replacement Market
How getting a new knee became one of the most popular surgeries in the country
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Americans are getting older, and heavier—and both trends are trouble for the country's knees.
The rate of total knee replacements almost doubled between 2000 and 2010 for Americans over 45, according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control, while the average age of patients decreased by more than two years, to 66.2. The elective surgeries, which replace worn-out cartilage and bone with metal and plastic mechanical joints, became the most common inpatient hospital procedure for people over 45 in 2008. Almost 700,000 were performed in 2010.