The hope is always that surgery will be the end-of-the-line answer to a health issue, but that ideal is not always the reality. After knee replacement, a revision surgery is sometimes needed.

There is a history of prescribing antibiotics to patients with hip and knee implants before they have any dental work done. There are concerns that this could help reduce the risk of bacteria entering the blood stream and affecting the implants. 

A hip or knee replacement may rid you of your arthritis pain. But you may also run the risk of infection after surgery.