Information for Medical Professionals

Test developed for early osteoarthritis diagnosis

A new blood test developed at King's College, London, could enable doctors to catch osteoarthritis early.

The new biomechanical test, developed by scientists at the university's Twin Research Unit, assesses 163 different metabolic signals simultaneously giving an overall picture of a person's metabolic state.

Commenting on the cutting-edge osteoarthritis research, Dr Guangju Zhai, lead author on the paper, which was published in the journal Annals of Rheumatic Diseases, said: "Osteoarthritis affects an estimated 8.5 million people in the UK and one of its main characteristics is damage to cartilage.

"The search for biomarkers, or traits, which can be used to measure or indicate the effects or progress of a condition is a hugely exciting area of clinical research."

Comparing 123 women with knee osteoarthritis and 299 health individuals on the Twins UK register, the researchers identified 14 metabolite ratios that are highly indicative of osteoarthritis development.

Researchers behind another paper published in the journal recently claimed they had linked an anti-inflammatory gene to the development and progression of osteoarthritis.

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