CHICAGO – Total hip replacement (THR) and total knee replacement (TKR) surgeries were associated with increased risk of acute myocardial infarction (AMI, heart attack) in the first two weeks after the surgical procedures, according to report published Online First by Archives of Internal Medicine, a JAMA Network publication…

…Furthermore, a previous AMI in the six months before surgery increased the risk of new AMI during the first six weeks after THR and TKR (4-fold increase) surgery but did not modify the relationship between THR or TKR and AMI, the authors conclude.