OAK BROOK, Ill.—Obesity is strongly associated with an increased risk of rapid cartilage loss, according to a study published in the August issue of Radiology.
Researchers showed that the top risk factors contributing to rapid cartilage loss were baseline cartilage damage, high BMI, tears or other injury to the meniscus and severe lesions seen on MRI at initial exam, reported EurekAlert. Other predictors were synovitis and effusion.
Researchers said excess weight significantly was associated with an increased risk of rapid cartilage loss. For a one-unit increase in BMI, the odds of rapid cartilage loss increased by 11 percent. No other demographic factors—including age, sex and ethnicity—were associated with rapid cartilage loss.
"As obesity is one of the few established risk factors for osteoarthritis, it is not surprising that obesity may also precede and predict rapid cartilage loss," said lead author Frank W. Roemer, MD, adjunct associate professor at Boston University and co-director of the Quantitative Imaging Center at the Department of Radiology at Boston University School of Medicine. "Weight loss is probably the most important factor to slow disease progression."
