Obesity and Joint Replacement Surgery in Canada: Findings from the Canadian Joint Replacement Registry (CJRR)

Obesity has been strongly implicated as a risk factor for knee osteoarthritis and, in some studies, for osteoarthritis of the hip. Osteoarthritis is the most commonly reported diagnosis for joint replacement patients. In this study, we conducted analyses based on data from the Canadian Joint Replacement Registry (CJRR) to estimate the relationships between overweight and obesity and rates of joint replacement surgery in Canada. Obese persons were over three times as likely and overweight persons were one and a half times more likely to undergo joint replacement surgery, compared to those in the acceptable weight category in 2003-04. This study provides evidence of a clinically relevant association between obesity and joint replacement surgery.