Prasanta Kumar Das1 , Roopshekhar Mohan2 , Parthapratim Das3 , Bidyut Dutta4
BACKGROUND It is known that a person with higher body mass index is more likely than persons with normal BMI to report idiopathic knee pain and accompanying disability. How obesity causes osteoarthritis (OA) at the knee joint has been the subject of considerable debate as OA involves non weight bearing joints too e.g. distal phalanges. Still it seems to be a fact that elevated BMI is associated with knee OA, but at the same time relatively little research has been conducted seeking direct association between these two, and then there exist some other factors also into play. This study has been undertaken to determine if any such association exists and to suggest recommendations based on the findings. Further association has also been sought in terms of laterality and extent of knee joint involvement. METHODS It is a hospital based cross sectional study. Data was collected in a preformed pretested questionnaire. Study was conducted for a period of 12 months from 1st July 2015 to June 31st 2016 at Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed Medical College and Hospital, Barpeta, Assam. A total of 150 cases of OA has been included in this study. RESULTS In the present study, it was found that 84% of the OA cases were overweight or obese. Higher age group people are significantly associated with knee osteoarthritis as compared to lower age group. Regarding type of osteoarthritis, unicompartmental OA was found to be the commoner variant among both sexes and it tends to appear in form of unilateral involvement of knee joint more commonly (72.6%). However, global type OA tends to involve both knees in most cases. CONCLUSIONS To delay and halt the progression of the disease, it is necessary to provide specific information regarding importance of regular exercise, weight control and dietary measures. Screening of onset of disease should be practiced routinely in the elderly, particularly in those with risk factors (age, sex and BMI, as per the current study).
