Joint Replacement Surgery What is joint replacement surgery? Click Image to Enlarge Joint replacement, a surgical procedure to remove and replace an arthritic or damaged joint with an artificial joint (called a prosthesis), may be considered only after other treatment options have failed to provide adequate relief from pain and/or disability. More than 230,000 primary total hip replacements and more than 540,000 total knee replacements are performed in the United States annually. When preparing for join...