Osteoarthritis in 2007

Osteoarthritis (OA) is often a progressive and disabling disease resulting from a combination of risk factors, including age, genetics, trauma, and knee alignment, as well as an imbalance of physiologic processes resulting in inflammatory cascades on a molecular level. The synovium, bone, and cartilage are each involved in the pathophysiological mechanisms that lead to progressive joint degeneration, and, thus, also serve as targets for therapies. Efforts to identify disease-modifying osteoarthritis drugs (DMOADs) have been hampered by several factors, but the focus has now shifted toward the validation of chemical and imaging biomarkers that should aid in DMOAD development. In this review, we summarize current pathological mechanisms occurring in the individual but interconnected compartments of OA joints, as well as discuss related therapeutic interventions that are currently available or on the horizon.     

Osteoporosis and Osteoarthritis, Rheumatoid Arthritis and Spondylarthropathies

Osteoporosis (OP) commonly occurs in the setting of inflammatory arthritis, whereas there is an inverse relationship with osteoarthritis (OA). We review the recent updates in epidemiology and pathophysiology of OP relating to several arthridities. In ankylosing spondylitis, lateral lumbar spine dual x-ray absorptiometry is better at detecting osteoporosis compared with the AP view and patients receiving treatment with anti- tumor necrosis factor medications had lower levels of bone turnover markers. With regard to rheumatoid arthritis, anticitrullinated peptide positivity without clinical arthritis as well as higher levels of interleukin-6 is associated with decreased bone mineral density and polymorphisms in the vitamin D receptor in RA patients may predispose to OP. With regard to OA, results from the Global Longitudinal Study of Osteoporosis in Women study and several radiological studies suggest that differences in the distribution of bone mass at the femoral neck may account for the inverse relationship of OA and OP, and several studies suggest that OA and OP have opposing cytokine and bone metabolism marker profiles.     

脊柱骨关节炎与骨质疏松的关系

本研究采用随机区组设计比较了１３８名老年人中脊柱骨关节炎及骨质疏松患者与正常对照组的骨质疏松及骨关节炎程度，结果表明，三组之间的骨质疏松及骨关节炎程度均相差非常显著（Ｐ＜０．０１），其中骨关节炎组的骨关节炎程度明显重于正常对照组和椎体压缩骨折组（Ｐ＜０．０１），而椎体压缩骨折组骨质疏松程度也明显重于正常对照组和骨关节炎组（Ｐ＜０．０１）。本研究结果提示脊柱的骨关节炎与骨质疏松之间存在着十分明显的负相关。     

骨关节炎与骨质疏松的相关性研究

关于骨关节炎与骨质疏松的相关性研究已有半个世纪,两者的相关性存在很大争议,骨关节炎与骨质疏松作为两种与骨代谢相关的疾病,雌激素、NO、基因遗传、甲状旁腺激素等多种因素对其存在影响。两者均属于与人体衰老密切联系且发病机制并不相同的退行性疾病。有的研究认为两者是对立的,OA患者的BMD是普遍增高的,系列的纵向研究也发现OA患者伴BMD升高其骨折发生率反而增加。有的研究认为BMD增高可以阻止OA的疾病进展。也有一部分学者认为两者并不关联。本文通过查阅国内外近10年的文献,探讨两者的确切关系,应用于临床,使患者受益。     

Osteoporosis and the orthopaedic surgeon in 2007

Despite advances in the prevention and treatment of fragility fractures, their prevalence continues to grow. The identification and treatment of osteoporosis in these high-risk patients are widely reported to be inadequate. The results of the 2002 and 2006 "Orthopaedic Surgeon Survey" under the auspice of BJD and IOF have shown a better involvement of the orthopaedic surgeon in osteoporosis management during his routine clinical practice. The orthopaedic surgeons knew that fragility fractures in patient over 50 years old require investigation for osteoporosis. Although some surgeons agreed to initiate investigation and inform patient about new osteoporosis fracture risk, the majority did not institute medical treatment and thought that the patient primary care provider or rheumatologist should be responsible for medical care. This round table highlights the current aspect of management of fragility fractures and focuses on diagnosis imaging techniques, pharmacological treatment as well as recent advances in implant design and surgical techniques.     

Differential Bone Metabolism Between Postmenopausal Women With Osteoarthritis and Osteoporosis

A comparative study of bone metabolism between postmenopausal women with osteoarthritis and osteoporosis showed that differential levels of bone remodeling markers, leptin, free leptin index, and osteoprotegerin might partly contribute to the proposed inverse relationship in bone mass between postmenopausal women with osteoarthritis and osteoporosis. Introduction : Osteoarthritis (OA) and osteoporosis (OP) are two common disorders affecting the quality of life in the elderly. The association between OA and OP has always been debated. The objective of this study was to compare bone metabolism between postmenopausal women with OA and OP. Materials and Methods : A total of 120 postmenopausal women with OA and OP (n = 60, respectively) were included in this comparative study. Anthropometric parameters and BMD at the spine and the proximal femur were measured. Serum leptin, soluble leptin receptor (sLR), osteoprotegerin (OPG), and bone remodeling markers, including bone‐specific alkaline phosphatase (BALP), osteocalcin (OC), deoxypyridinoline cross‐links (DPD), and cross‐linked N‐telopeptides of type I collagen (NTX), were quantified with commercial ELISA or EIA kits. Free leptin index (FLI) was also calculated by the ratio between serum leptin and sLR levels. Results : Postmenopausal women with OA had higher body weight, body mass index, fat mass, and percentage of fat than those suffered from OP. Compared with the patients in OP group, the patients in OA group had significantly higher BMD values at all sites measured. Higher serum leptin and FLI and lower OPG levels were shown in the OA group (leptin: 31.22 ± 6.4 versus 26.50 ± 9.27 ng/ml, p < 0.001; FLI: 3.20 ± 1.02 versus 2.50 ± 0.95, p < 0.05; OPG: 4.75 ± 1.97 versus 6.96 ± 2.75 pM, p < 0.001), whereas lower serum OC and higher urine DPD were noted in the OP group (OC: 16.45 ± 8.45 versus 13.06 ± 6.25 ng/ml, p < 0.05; DPD: 10.83 ± 7.12 versus 15.29 ± 6.65 nM BCE/mM Cr, p < 0.001). Serum OPG levels negatively correlated with BMD at all sites assessed. However, no correlation was found between leptin and BMD. Only in the OA group di positive correlations exist between FLI and Z‐score at the femoral neck and Ward's triangle region. After stepwise regression analysis, it was found that differential factors were able to predict the variance of BMD at different sites to a certain extent. Conclusions : Our study suggests that there are significant differences in bone metabolism between postmenopausal women with OA and OP and provides evidence for the inverse relationship between OA and OP. Differential levels of bone remodeling markers, leptin, FLI, and OPG may partly contribute to the proposed inverse relationship. Roles of leptin and its soluble receptor in bone metabolism regulation should be explored further.     

Articular Cartilage Degradation and Aberrant Subchondral Bone Remodeling in Patients with Osteoarthritis and Osteoporosis

Osteoarthritis (OA) and osteoporosis (OP) are two skeletal disorders associated with joint structures. Occasionally, OA and OP occur in the same patient. However, the effect of OP changes on OA progression in patients with osteoporotic OA (OP-OA) has not been reported, especially the potential association between subchondral bone and articular cartilage. Thus we investigated the alterations in the microstructure, biomechanical properties, and remodeling of subchondral bone as well as their association with cartilage damage in the hip joint of patients with OP-OA. Thirty-nine femoral head specimens were obtained from patients who underwent total hip arthroplasty (OA group, n = 19; OP-OA group, n = 20), and healthy specimens from cadaver donors were used (control group, n = 10). The microstructure and biomechanical properties of subchondral bone were evaluated by micro–computed tomography and micro–finite-element analysis. Histology, histomorphometric measurements, and immunohistochemistry were used to assess subchondral bone remodeling and cartilage damage. Linear regression analysis was performed to elucidate the relationship between subchondral bone and articular cartilage. In the subchondral bone of the OP-OA group, compared with that of the OA group, aberrant bone remodeling leads to an inferior microstructure and worsening biomechanical properties, potentially affecting transmission of loading stress from the cartilage to the subchondral bone, and then resulting in accelerated OA progression in patients with OP-OA. The results indicate that changes in subchondral bone could affect OA development and the improvement in subchondral bone with bone-metabolism agents may help mitigate OA progression when OP and OA coexist in the same patients. © 2019 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.     

Osteoarthritis of the Fourth and Fifth Tarsometatarsal Joint After Calcaneo-Cuboid Distraction Arthrodesis in Flatfoot Correction

Lateral column lengthening procedures are typically performed in patients with flatfoot deformity. There have been reports of complications caused by lateral column lengthening. In this study, clinical and radiographic osteoarthritis of the fourth and fifth tarsometatarsal joints were retrospectively assessed as complications after lateral column lengthening. Seventeen stage II flatfeet belonging to 15 patients were included. The mean age of the subjects was 64.2 ± 7.7 (range 52-80) years. The average lateral column lengthening length achieved was 12.7 ± 2.2 (range 8-15) mm. The average duration of follow-up postsurgically was 57.2 ± 37.7 (range 4-110) months. The pain group (n = 8), who postoperatively experienced weightbearing pain in the plantar-lateral aspect of the foot and/or tenderness at the dorsal-lateral, and the no-pain group (n = 9) were compared. All patients in the pain group underwent lateral column lengthening of 10 mm or more. However, there were no significant differences in age, body mass index, American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society score, and the lateral column lengthening amounts between the groups. In the pain group, all patients had osteoarthritic changes in the fourth and fifth tarsometatarsal joints. In all subjects, 11 feet were diagnosed osteoarthritis. Patients with pain had a significantly lower postoperative first talometatarsal angle (p ≤ .05). Osteoarthritis of the fourth and fifth tarsometatarsal joints as complications after lateral column lengthening in flatfoot is first reported. Our study indicated a high possibility of osteoarthritis in patients who had pain in the lateral aspect of the foot after lateral column lengthening.