Lifestyle intervention can ward off obesity-related knee pain

(HealthDay)—For overweight adults with diabetes mellitus, an intensive lifestyle intervention (ILI) can prevent knee pain, according to a study published in the July issue of Arthritis Care & Research.

Daniel K. White, P.T., Sc.D., from the University of Delaware in Newark, and colleagues examined whether an ILI prevents incident knee pain among overweight adults with diabetes mellitus. Data were analyzed for a subcohort of 2,899 subjects from the Action for Health in Diabetes study who reported no knee pain at baseline but were at high risk due to obesity. The effect of either ILI or diabetes mellitus support and education (DSE) on incident knee pain was examined at year one and year four.

The researchers found that ILI participants were 15 percent less likely to develop knee pain compared with DSE participants at year one (risk ratio, 0.85; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.74 to 0.98). The difference decreased to 5 percent at year four and was no longer significant.

"An ILI of diet and exercise may prevent the development of knee pain among those at high risk in the short term," the authors write. "Health care providers may consider recommending diet and exercise as a means to prevent the development of knee pain among those at high risk."