The odds are against those who are working as miners, cleaners, farmers, builders, metal workers, service workers, and floor layers. (Source: Getty/Thinkstock)
A recent study has found that people who are engaged in some specific kind of jobs, are more likely than others to suffer from knee osteoarthritis. These include people who do a lot of climbing, heavy lifting, prolonged kneeling, squatting, and standing.
It is said that knee osteoarthritis is a highly-prevalent chronic condition, and also one of the biggest contributors to loss of work and disability. For this particular study, researchers analysed the results of other such relevant studies published in the past. The latest results have been published in Arthritis Care & Research.
It was found during the course of the combined research — done using 71 studies involving 9,50,000 participants — that the odds are against those who are working as miners, cleaners, farmers, builders, metal workers, service workers, and floor layers.
When compared with those who led a sedentary lifestyle, it was found that agricultural workers had up to a 64 per cent more chance of developing knee osteoarthritis. In the same way, builders and floor layers had a 63 per cent more chance of developing the condition.
“This collaborative research informs workplace regulators by identifying people frequently involved in specific work activities who may be susceptible to knee osteoarthritis, the most common joint disorder worldwide,” lead author Xia Wang of the University of Sydney, was quoted as saying.
Knee osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disease, which is typically the end result of wear-and-tear, along with the progressive loss of articular cartilage.