Running 'can help protect people against knee osteoarthritis'

Running as a habitual exercise at any stage in life can have protective effects against knee osteoarthritis, according to a new study from the US.

Led by the Baylor College of Medicine in Texas and presented at the American College of Rheumatology's annual meeting, the research runs counter to the common assumption that running can increase a person's osteoarthritis risk, an association that has previously been observed in studies of elite athletes.

For this new study, the team looked at data for 2,683 patients of various ages, with participants receiving knee X-rays and symptom assessments, as well being asked to complete a physical activity questionnaire.

After collecting the data, the researchers reported that runners had a lower prevalence of knee pain and radiographic or symptomatic osteoarthritis than non-runners, regardless of the age at which they ran.

For people who had run at any time in their lives, 22.8 percent had symptomatic osteoarthritis, compared to 29.8 percent of non-runners. This suggests that regular running, even at a non-elite level, not only does not increase the risk of developing knee osteoarthritis but may protect against it.

Dr Grace Hsiao-Wei Lo of Baylor College of Medicine, a lead author on the study, said: "This does not address the question of whether or not running is harmful to people who have pre-existing knee osteoarthritis. However, in people who do not have knee OA, there is no reason to restrict participation in habitual running at any time in life, from the perspective that it does not appear to be harmful to the knee joint."

A spokeswoman for Arthritis Research UK commented: "We're very keen to get the positive message across that moderate, recreational running, with mileages of less than 40 to 50 miles a week, is unlikely to cause premature osteoarthritis.

"The benefits of this level of exercise on the bones and the heart will far outweigh any minor running-related problems. With higher intensity running with significant mileage, for example more than 100 miles a week, there is a higher risk of osteoarthritis of the leg joint."

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