How long does a modern hip or knee last?

Countries with mature national joint registries — including the UK, Australia, and data compiled in Canada by CIHI — have tracked hundreds of thousands of hip and knee replacements for decades. These registries are the best evidence we have, because they follow real-world results across many surgeons and hospitals, not just a single study population. The consistent finding is that modern hip and knee implants last a long time for the large majority of patients.

Registry data is usually reported as a "survivorship" rate — the percentage of implants that have not needed revision (replacement or major repair) by a given number of years after the original surgery.

Hip replacements have a slightly longer track record in registry data than knees, partly because the ball-and-socket design distributes load differently than the knee's hinge-like mechanics. Both, however, are considered among the most successful and durable operations in all of medicine. The specific implant, the way it's fixed to the bone (cemented versus uncemented), and the bearing surface all play a role in longevity, and your surgeon chooses these based on your bone quality, age and activity level.

A few factors are consistently associated with a higher chance of needing revision surgery sooner:

• Younger age at surgery. Not because the implant is worse, but because a younger, more active patient puts more cumulative load and years on the joint. This is one reason surgeons weigh timing carefully rather than simply operating as early as possible — see our article on whether there's a "right age" for joint replacement.
• High-impact activity. Regular running, jumping sports, or heavy manual labour place more repetitive stress on the bearing surfaces than walking, swimming or cycling.
• Excess body weight. More load through the joint over time is linked to higher wear rates, particularly in knees.
• Infection or early complications. These are uncommon but are the most frequent cause of revision in the first few years, rather than mechanical wear.

You may see marketing claims about implants lasting a "lifetime." Registry data doesn't yet exist to prove any implant will last 50-plus years, simply because modern designs haven't been in widespread use that long, and most patients receiving them today are older to begin with. What the data does support is that a well-placed modern implant, in a typical joint-replacement patient, has a very good chance of outlasting the need for revision in that person's lifetime — which is a more honest and equally reassuring way to think about it.

Revision surgery — replacing a worn or loosened implant — is a more involved operation than a first replacement, but it's also a well-established procedure with good outcomes for most patients. If you do outlive your first implant, whether because you had it young, stayed very active, or simply lived a long life, a revision is a realistic and manageable option, not a medical dead end.

For most people having a hip or knee replacement in their 60s, 70s or beyond, a well-performed modern replacement is very likely to last the rest of their life. For younger, more active patients, it's worth having an honest conversation with your surgeon about activity choices and realistic expectations — not because the outlook is poor, but because it puts you in control of the factors that matter most.