Determinants of Hip and Knee Replacement: The Role of Social Support and Family Dynamics

The objective of this study was to examine variations in the determinants of joint replacement (JR) across gender and age, with emphasis on the role of social support and family dynamics. We analyzed data from the US Health and Retirement Study (1998-2010) on individuals aged 45 or older with no prior receipt of JR. We used logistic regression to analyze the probability of receiving knee or hip replacement by gender and age (<65, 65+). We estimated the effect of demographic, health needs, economic, and familial support variables on the rate of JR. We found that being married/partnered with a healthy spouse/partner is positively associated with JR utilization in both age groups (65+ group OR: 1.327 and <65 group OR: 1.476). While this finding holds for men, it is not statistically significant for women. Among women younger than 65, having children younger than 18 lowers the odds (OR: 0.201) and caring for grandchildren increases the odds (1.364) of having a JR. Finally, elderly women who report availabilit...