Close to Barefoot Best for Arthritic Knees

According to Matteson, osteoarthritis of the knee is not the same for all people. Some people feel pain inside their knees, others feel it on the outside. He expressed interest in determining how footwear might relate with the different manifestations of knee pain. Osteoarthritis is a massive problem, said Matteson, affecting 20 million to 30 million Americans every year.

"Literally hundreds of thousands of knee replacement surgeries are due to osteoarthritis," he noted.

Knee osteoarthritis is caused by cartilage breakdown in the knee joint. Factors that increase the risk of knee osteoarthritis include being overweight, age, injury or stress to the joints, and family history.

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In knee osteoarthritis, there is abundant evidence that patients with abnormally high loading knees (high amounts of stress on part or all of the knee joint) are at increased risk of both injury and disease progression, according to the American College of Rheumatology.

More information

For more on osteoarthritis, head to the Arthritis Foundation.