OA: All in the Family

Knee osteoarthritis (OA) runs in the family,according to findings reported in the Annals ofRheumatic Diseases (September 2004). Theresults suggested that an individual's genesplay a role in the condition. The study involved490 individuals with severe knee OA, 773 oftheir siblings over the age of 40, and 1729other individuals with knee pain. Using x-raysof the knees of the siblings and the participantswith knee pain, the researchers wereable to look for signs of OA.

The researchers found that the siblingswere >2 times as likely to have knee OA,compared with the other participants. Theresults remained the same even when theresearchers took into account major risk factorssuch as smoking, age, gender, and beingoverweight. As for the genetic link, the risk forsiblings was spread across different ages, butbrothers were more likely to have OA than sisters.