New research has delivered a timely warning if you have creaking or grating knee joints. Often dismissed as just another annoying sign of ageing, a noisy knee joint is actually a condition known as ‘creptus’. Because most people with creptus don’t experience any joint pain, it can be easily overlooked. Yet in a major new research study from the US, cretpus was found to be an important warning sign of osteoarthritis, a painful and at times crippling joint disease.
The research followed people with or without noisy knees for four years. Sadly, those with cretpus were more than twice as likely to develop painful osteoarthritis.
A key recommendation of this research is that limiting the risk of osteoarthritis starts early. If you think you might be at risk, seek medical advice.
Professor David Cameron-Smith is a regular Fit Planet contributor. A transplanted Australian living in New Zealand, he obtained a PhD in nutritional biochemistry from Deakin University, and undertook postdoctoral training at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney. His research interests include the importance of nutrition in the maintenance of optimal health in an ageing population, and the impact of nutrition in regulating the function of muscles.
