Factors Associated with Pain and Disability in Knee Osteoarthritis
2 Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Ege University School of Medicine, İzmir, Turkey
3 İstanbul Şişli Etfal Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi, Fizik Tedavi Kliniği, İstanbul, Türkiye
Objective: To evaluate the risk factors associated with pain and disability in the patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA).
Materials and Methods: One hundred and forty-one patients, ranging in age from 40 to 80 years, with knee OA were included into the study. Pain was measured by WOMAC (Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Arthritis Index) and VAS (visual analog scale). Disability was measured by WOMAC. Detailed demographic, social, morphologic and medical history was taken from all patients. The knee radiographs were evaluated by using the Kellgren-Lawrence grading system.
Results: There were middle-high correlations between the demographic data (age, body mass index-BMI, education level and pain duration) and WOMAC-pain and function, VAS and radiological grade (p<0.05). Obese patients had significantly worst scores for all evaluation parameters (p<0.05). Kellgren-Lawrence radiological grade was correlated with VAS and WOMAC-function. WOMAC-pain and function subscales and radiological grade were significantly higher in the women when
compared with men (p<0.05). Among the medical problems, there was no relation to disability and pain.
Conclusion: This study showed that old age, increased BMI, low education level, female sex and high radiological grade were related factors with pain and disability in the knee OA.
Keywords : Osteoarthritis, pain, disability, related factors