Trends in Knee and Hip Arthroplasty in Chile Between 2004 and 2019

Introduction The purpose of this study is to describe the incidence rate (IR) per 100,000 inhabitants of arthroplasty in Chile between 2004 and 2019, emphasizing knee and hip arthroplasty. Methods This is a cross-sectional study. Patients who underwent arthroplasty between 2004 and 2019 were identified in the free access database of the Chilean Department of Statistics and Health Information (DEIS), which depends directly on the Ministry of Health. This register stores all hospital discharges of the country from private or public health centers. The trend during the period of study was analyzed using Spearman's correlation. Results From a total of 111,303 patients, 133,518 arthroplasties were performed. Hip arthroplasty (HA) accounted for 73.35%, followed by knee arthroplasty (KA) (23,92%). A significant upward trend was found in HA (rho=0.95, p<0.000) and KA (rho=0.98, p<0.000). Most of the surgeries were done within the Public Health Network (61,6%), but 20% of patients affiliated with public insurance underwent arthroplasty in a private center. Patients above 60 years of age affiliated with private insurance underwent 1.8 HA and 2.5 KA for every one HA and KA undergone by patients of the same age group who were affiliated with public insurance. Conclusion HA was more frequent than KA. A significant gap was found in the incidence of arthroplasty as compared to countries belonging to the Organization for Cooperation and Economic Development, given by a less aged population and by inequity in health access. Wider coverage and a national registry for arthroplasty must be considered in Chilean health policies.