Effectiveness Of Obesity Management For Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis is one of the most common and disabling complications of obesity. Irrespective of whether or not the osteoarthritis is directly caused by excess weight, there is little doubt that the sheer mechanical forces acting on the affected joints will significantly impact mobility and quality of life.

Now the Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health (CADTH) has released a report on the Clinical Effectiveness of Obesity Management Interventions Delivered in Primary Care for Patients with Osteoarthritis.

This systematic review of the literature leads to the following findings:

1) Dietary weight loss interventions, either alone or in combination with exercise produce greater reductions in the peak knee compressive force and plasma levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6) in knee OA patients compared with exercise-induced weight loss.

2) There is a significantly greater reduction in pain and improvements in functions in patients who received diet plus exercise interventions compared with either diet–only or exercise–only interventions.

3) Regardless of the type of weight-loss interventions, participants who lost 10% or more of baseline body weight had greater reductions in knee compressive force, systemic IL-6 concentrations, and pain, as well as gained greater improvement in function than those who lost less of their baseline weight.

4) Participants who lost the most weight also experienced greater loss of bone mass density at the femoral neck and hip, but not the spine, without a significant change of their baseline clinical classification with regards to osteoporosis or osteopenia.

Thus, in summary, weight loss, particularly when achieved through a combination of both diet and exercise can result in significant improvement in physical function, mobility, and pain scores in individuals with osteoarthritis.

Unfortunately, this is by no means easy to achieve and even harder to sustain.

Although I may sound like a broken record – we desperately need better treatments for obesity.

@DrSharma
Edmonton, AB