Obese people are four times as likely to develop osteoarthritis of the knees as they are to develop high blood pressure or type-2 diabetes,
according to a leading arthritis charity, launching a new online report.1
But whereas high
blood pressure and diabetes may be substantially improved on losing
weight and are relatively easy to control with therapy, the changes
resulting from osteoarthritis are irreversible, as worn cartilage
cannot currently be repaired.
However, according to Professor
Alan Silman, medical director of the Arthritis Research Campaign, there
is good news for obese and overweight people whose knees become painful
due to osteoarthritis as a result of their weight.
“Research
shows that losing weight, however modest, when combined with exercise,
is a panacea at every stage,” said Professor Silman. “Achieving a
healthy weight reduces the risk of developing the disease in the first
place, relieves existing symptoms and helps to prevent further
deterioration. And weight loss and exercise has been shown to achieve
the same level of symptom relief as joint replacement surgery.”
The
medical research charity is concerned that while rising rates of
obesity have been linked to a number of serious disorders and health
concerns, the risk of potentially crippling osteoarthritis have been,
if not ignored, then certainly under-estimated.
The true
impact of obesity in the development of knee osteoarthritis has only
recently become clear, said the charity, pointing to a study which
revealed that at the most extreme, very obese people with a body mass
index of 36 or more have a 14-fold higher risk of knee osteoarthritis
compared to those in the healthy BMI range.
Professor Silman
warned there was a real concern that unless rocketing rates of obesity
were tackled, the numbers of people needing joint replacement surgery
would soar, which would have a considerable impact on the NHS.
“There
are two major risk factors for developing osteoarthritis – ageing and
obesity – and as both these factors are on the rise in the UK, it’s an
obvious prediction to make that the outcome could be a massive cost to
the health service,” he added.
Joint replacements are more
likely to fail earlier in obese patients, and the heavier the patients
the less likely it is that surgery will bring about an improvement in
symptoms.
Very obese women are 19 times more likely to need
knee replacement and four times more likely to need hip replacement
surgery compared to women of a healthy weight.
A series of
studies have shown that even modest weight loss and exercise can help
to reduce not only pain but also mobility and the ability to perform
everyday activities.
Professor Silman’s comments follow the publication of the charity’s online report, Osteoarthritis and Obesity, which
warns the public of the hitherto little publicised dangers to their
health and quality of life of obesity on their joints.
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1Arthritis Research Campaign. July 15, 2009. http://www.arc.org.uk/news/pressreleases/awareness/obesity.asp.
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