The Cracking Sound Your Knees Make Could be a Sign of Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis, a degenerative joint disease, is a type of arthritis in which the cartilage at the end of the bones that acts as a cushion wears down. Osteoarthritis is a chronic condition of the joints and can affects any joints in the body but it is most common in hips, lower back, neck and the knees. As the disease progresses, you may experience pain, swelling or inflammation and difficulty in movement. Over time, the bones may break down to due constant wear and tear and this rubbing can also result in spurs. The most common symptoms of knee osteoarthritis are swelling, stiffness, pain while walking, and tenderness of the knee. According to a new study, published in the journal Arthritis Care and Research, if you hear a grating, cracking or popping sound often when you bend your knees or move around, it could be a warning sign of Osteoarthritis.Researchers explain that as the cartilage gets damaged, the knee joint may move freely and crackle and crunch while moving which is also known as Knee Crepitus. These noises in the knee are common and usually painless but thy signal the risk of Osteoarthritis. Grace Lo, assistant professor at Baylor College of Medicine in the United States along with his team noticed that many people are diagnosed with Osteoarthritis but they may not experience pain or the other common symptoms. 
(Also read: 5 Simple Exercises for Knee Pain Relief)
According to the team, noisy knees can serve as an early symptom of Osteoarthritis and people who experience them are at a higher risk of developing the joint disease. In fact, they also state that Knee Crepitus can be a sign of other disease like rheumatoid or infectious arthritis. For the study, the team examined 3,500 participants who were at a high risk for developing knee osteoarthritis. It was seen that out of those who developed the disease within a year, more than 75 per cent had signs of osteoarthritis on radiographic images but no frequent knee pain at the start of the study. Experts believe that these findings may help in identifying the risk factors for knee osteoarthritis and also assist in early diagnosis and better treatment.