Cumulative Knee Adductor Load and Clinical Measures in Knee Osteoarthritis

INTRODUCTION Knee osteoarthritis (OA) is a multi-factorial degenerative joint disaese resulting in pain and altered neuromuscular performance. Repetition and abnormal loading, combined with mechanical factors are attributed to the progression of knee OA [1,2], but the effects of repetitive weight bearing activity remain unclear. The cumulative knee adductor load (CKAL) is a parameter that represents the total integrated loading exposure during daily activity and provides a stable measure of total exposure to knee loading [3]. Increased CKAL is associated with increased pain [4], but the relationship between CKAL and clinical measures commonly used to assess knee OA have not been studied. The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between CKAL and these clinical measures of knee OA.