Older adults with osteoarthritis show lower functional performance compared to those with diabetes or hypertension:...

To compare objective functional performance among individuals with osteoarthritis (OA), diabetes, and hypertension (HT), alone or in combination.

We used data from Wave 2 of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). Participants were grouped into seven disease categories based on the presence of OA, diabetes, and HT, alone or in combination, plus a no-disease reference group. Functional performance was assessed using grip strength and a five-chair rise test for adults <75 years, and grip strength and walking speed for adults ≥75 years. Ordinary least squares regression models adjusted for age, sex, BMI, and educational level estimated group differences.

We included data from 15,222 individuals. Our adjusted analyses showed that individuals <75 years from all groups, except those with hypertension only, showed lower grip strength compared to those with no disease. For the chair stand test, differences were only observed for patients with OA and those with HT and diabetes. Among individuals older than 75 years, patients with only OA, only diabetes, OA and diabetes, and those with all three diseases had lower grip strength. No group differences were seen in the walking speed test. The estimated differences of the patient groups were small and close, often with overlapping confidence intervals. Therefore, their clinical relevance may be debatable.

OA is associated with lower functional performance, particularly grip strength, compared to those with no disease. These findings highlight the need for exercise-based interventions for individuals with OA, as guidelines suggest.