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Running history not associated with risk for hip, knee arthritis in marathoners
Results published in The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery showed an increased risk for hip and knee arthritis in active marathoners was independently predicted by age, family history and surgical history, but not running history.
Through a hip and knee health survey, researchers assessed pain, personal and family history of arthritis, surgical history, running volume, personal record time and current running status in 675 active marathoners who completed five or more marathons and were currently running a minimum of 10 miles per week. Researchers compared arthritis prevalence in U.S. marathoners with National Center for Health Statistics prevalence estimates for a matched group of the U.S. population.
Overall, marathoners had a mean age of 48 years, completed a mean of 76 marathons and ran a mean distance of 36 miles weekly during a mean time of 19 years. Results showed 47% and 8.9% of marathoners reported hip or knee pain and arthritis, respectively. The subgroup of U.S. marathoners had a significantly lower prevalence of arthritis at 8.8% compared with a prevalence of 17.9% in the matched U.S. population and in subgroups stratified by age, sex, BMI and physical activity level.
Following hip or knee surgery, researchers found seven marathoners continued to run. Independent risk factors for arthritis included age and family and surgical history; however, researchers noted no significant risk for arthritis was associated with running duration, intensity, mileage or the number of marathons complete. – by Casey Tingle
Disclosures: Ponzio reports no relevant financial disclosures. Please see the full study for a list of all other authors’ relevant financial disclosures.