Is osteoarthritis of knee a culprit for varus and valgus deformity? A retrospective study

Background: Osteoarthritis is the most common arthritis in humans, and knee OA is a major cause of chronic disability. There are no treatments that change the natural course of OA. Aims: To study age wise and gender wise prevalence of varus-valgus deformity in patients with osteoarthritis of knee. Method & Materials: Ethical clearance from IEC was obtained. In this retrospective study, 214 radiographs of subjects in the age range of 50-65years, both genders without history fracture or other severe arthritic condition were assessed on the PACS software. The radiographs were graded according to kellgren and lawerence classification & all 4 grades of OA knee were included. A long axis of femur and tibia were drawn and the angle formed by the two lines was measured.. The values were recorded as varus (lesser than 1800) or valgus (greater than 1800) and presented based on the grade-wise, age groups-wise & gender-wise distribution. Statistical analysis was done and presented. Results: Knee alignment was measured in 214 radiographs, within the age group 50-65 years. The mean of the angulations was found to be 173.190(±4.25). The mean of tibiofemroal angle in different grades of osteoarthritis was gr. 1(n=96) 175.530(±3.37), gr. 2(n=83)172.530(±3.59), gr.3(n=31) 167.930(±2.28), gr.4(n=4)166.920(±2.08).Varus-valgus prevalence being varus=197 (92.05%) valgus=17(7.94%). The prevalence of deformity and angulations is greater in females (173.54) as compared to males (172.74) Conclusion: In this study we can conclude that there is greater prevalence of varus deformity in osteoarthritis of knee and the amount of deformity tends to increase with an increase in the severity of osteoarthritis. The prevalence of deformity and angulations is greater in female as compared to male.