%0 Journal Article
%T Is Lifelong Knee Joint Force from Work, Home, and Sport Related to Knee Osteoarthritis?
%A Charles R. Ratzlaff
%A Mieke Koehoorn
%A Jolanda Cibere
%A Jacek A. Kopec
%J International Journal of Rheumatology
%D 2012
%I Hindawi Publishing Corporation
%R 10.1155/2012/584193
%X Purpose. To investigate the association of cumulative lifetime knee joint force on the risk of self-reported medically-diagnosed knee osteoarthritis (OA). Methods. Exposure data on lifetime physical activity type (occupational, household, sport/recreation) and dose (frequency, intensity, duration) were collected from 4,269 Canadian men and women as part of the Physical Activity and Joint Heath cohort study. Subjects were ranked in terms of the ¡°cumulative peak force index¡±, a measure of lifetime mechanical knee force. Multivariable logistic regression was conducted to obtain adjusted effects for mean lifetime knee force on the risk of knee OA. Results. High levels of total lifetime, occupational and household-related force were associated with an increased in risk of OA, with odds ratio¡¯s ranging from approximately 1.3 to 2. Joint injury, high BMI and older age were related to risk of knee OA, consistent with previous studies. Conclusions. A newly developed measure of lifetime mechanical knee force from physical activity was employed to estimate the risk of self-reported, medically-diagnosed knee OA. While there are limitations, this paper suggests that high levels of total lifetime force (all domains combined), and occupational force in men and household force in women were risk factors for knee OA. 1. Introduction The promotion of physical activity (PA) is a major public health initiative in many countries due to its protective effect on numerous major health problems [1], including Canada and the US where public health bodies recommend 30 to 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous activities per day. However, there has long been a concern that such promotion could lead to a rise in hip and knee OA, the major public health problem in musculoskeletal medicine and a leading cause of chronic disability [2]. While there is a broad agreement that PA is an important determinant of joint health, it is unclear what amount and type of PA are beneficial or pose a risk. In short, despite numerous studies, the association between PA and joint health is complex and poorly understood. While different study designs, case definitions, sampling frames, and size play a role, the wide variation in how PA is defined is the most probable reason for the uncertainty. There is a lack of valid, reliable, and standardized instruments across studies, substantial measurement error, variation in the period and nature of PA measured, and failure to measure the most relevant aspect of PA-joint load [3]. Where accurate and precise measures are available, they are impractical for use in
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/ijr/2012/584193/