Risk Factors of Knee Osteoarthritis

What are the Causes and Risk Factors of Knee Osteoarthritis?

Osteoarthritis is known to be one of the common types of arthritis. This is one health problem which is affecting some millions of people across the globe. It happens because of the wearing of the protective cartilage located at the ends of the bones over time. The fact is that osteoarthritis can actually damage almost all joints present in the human body, but this disorder mostly affects the joints of hands, hips, knees, and spine. Causes and risk factors of Knee Osteoarthritis: The prime reason for osteoarthritis of the knee is nothing but age. It true that everyone will with time develops some amount of osteoarthritis. But there are few factors which can increase the risk of Knee Osteoarthritis at a very early age. Some of the prime causes of
  • Age. The capacity of cartilage to get healed naturally decreases when a person gets older with time.
  • Weight. Excess body weight causes pressure on body joints, and majorly on knees.
  • Heredity.  Heredity can be the cause of having knee osteoarthritis. It can be because of inherited abnormalities of those bones which surrounds the joint of the knee.
  • Gender. Women start aging at the age of 55 and above and comparatively earlier than men for developing osteoarthritis in the knee.
  • Repetitive injuries due to stress. This happens because of the nature of the work we do. People engaged in occupations which includes several activities that cause stress of joint may develop knee osteoarthritis for the constant pressure that the joint need to bear.
  • Athletics. Athletes engaged in sports like football, basketball, tennis, or running are at huge risk of having these health issues. Proper precautions must be taken to avoiding injury. But regular yet moderate exercise will make joints strong and will reduce the risk of having osteoarthritis.
  • Other health issues: People having rheumatoid arthritis are also prone towards developing of osteoarthritis. People having metabolic disorders, like excess iron or growth hormone, are at risk of this osteoarthritis.
It is one of the popular degenerative disease the condition of which keeps degrading if timely attention and precaution is not taken.  For some, the condition degrades so badly that they end up making the movement a complete stop. In case the pain is completely unbearable then doctors may recommend going for surgery for joint replacement.  After the age of 30 years, women are recommended to take calcium tablet to strengthen the power of the bones which starts degrading after this age. Take healthy foods and do regular exercises to strengthen the power of bones and to avoid early osteoarthritis.