Abstract

Introduction Knee osteoarthritis (OA) can affect the hip and ankle joints, as these three joints operate as a kinetic/kinematic chain while walking. Purpose This study was performed to compare (1) hip and ankle joint gait mechanics between knee OA and control groups and (2) to investigate the effects of knee gait mechanics on the ipsilateral hip and ankle joint. Methods The study group included 89 patients with end-stage knee OA and 42 age- and sex-matched controls without knee pain or OA. Kinetic and kinematic parameters were evaluated using a commercial optoelectric gait analysis system. Range of motion (ROM) during gait, coronal motion arc, and peak joint moment of hip, knee, and ankle joints were investigated. Results Ankle varus moment was 50% higher in the OA group (p=0.005) and was associated with higher knee adduction moment (p<0.001). The ROM of the hip and ankle joints were significantly smaller in the OA group and were associated with limited ROM of the knee joint (both p<0.001). The coronal motion arc of the hip was smaller in the OA group and was also associated with limited motion arc of the knee (p<0.001). Conclusions Knee OA has a negative effect on the ROM, coronal motion arc, and joint moment of the ankle joint and hip joint. As knee OA is associated with increased moment of the ankle joint, attention should be paid to the ankle joint when treating patients with knee OA.

Highlights

  • Knee osteoarthritis (OA) can affect the hip and ankle joints, as these three joints operate as a kinetic/kinematic chain while walking

  • The hip and ankle range of motion (ROM) were significantly smaller in the OA group than the control group (Table 2, Figure 1)

  • Knee ROM was smaller in the OA group (p

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Summary

Introduction

Knee osteoarthritis (OA) can affect the hip and ankle joints, as these three joints operate as a kinetic/kinematic chain while walking. Range of motion (ROM) during gait, coronal motion arc, and peak joint moment of hip, knee, and ankle joints were investigated. The gait of knee OA patients is characterized by higher knee adduction moment (KAM), a marker of medial joint loading and known risk factor for progression of arthritis [7,8,9]. Such gait changes in knee OA can directly or indirectly affect adjacent weight-bearing joints, i.e., the hip and ankle joints [10,11,12]

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