Osteoarthritis affecting the knee is a very common problem in those over the age of 50. It poses a costs the individual in terms of pain and suffering and health care costs. It also has a significant impact on quality of life. The two main risk factors for knee osteoarthritis are obesity and what the biomechanists call a higher knee adduction moment. This moment or torque is a force related to the angle of the knee to vertical. Bowing of the legs are the most significant factor that increases these forces through the knee to casue the arthitis.
Early in the stages of knee osteoarthritis, strengthening exercises for the knee muscles are the most helpful. Drugs such as glucosamine and anti-inflammatory drugs are often helpful. As the osteoarthritis progresses, more physical therapy is usually needed. Eventually if it progresses, knee replacement surgery can be the option of last resort.
Recently a lot of attention has been paid to the use of lateral wedges for medial knee osteoarthritis. Lateral wedges cost less than a dollar and are wedges placed in the shoe to change the angle of the foot which changes the mechanics of the knee. They only work for medial arthritis, which primarily affects the inside of the knee. They do not work for arthritis on the outside of the knee. Research has shown that lateral wedging generally do improve symptoms in a large proportion of people. There are also a significant group that they do not seem to work in, but given their relatively low cost, not harm is done.
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