ArticleEuropean journal of medical research2026
Association between low-density lipoprotein and structural changes in the knee joint of patients with symptomatic osteoarthritis is mediated by relative fat mass.
Article in European journal of medical research, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundKnee osteoarthritis (KOA) is strongly associated with obesity, yet body mass index (BMI) fails to capture fat distribution or metabolic activity, limiting its utility in understanding KOA pathogenesis. Relative fat mass (RFM), a novel estimator of whole-body fat percentage derived from waist circumference and height, may provide a more accurate assessment of adiposity and its metabolic consequences.
objectiveThis study aimed to compare RFM and BMI in predicting MRI-detected structural changes in KOA and to investigate whether RFM statistically mediates the association between low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and cartilage degeneration.
methodsA retrospective analysis of 184 patients with symptomatic KOA was performed. BMI, RFM, and serum lipid profiles were measured. MRI assessments included cartilage volume, cartilage defects, and bone marrow lesions. Multivariable regression and ROC analysis evaluated predictive performance, while mediation analysis tested RFM's role in the LDL-cartilage volume relationship.
resultsRFM and BMI showed moderate correlation (r = 0.600, P < 0.001). RFM demonstrated significantly stronger associations with cartilage volume loss than BMI, particularly for patellar cartilage (RFM: β = -0.038, P < 0.001; BMI: P > 0.05). ROC analysis confirmed RFM's superior predictive ability for patellar cartilage volume (AUC = 0.681 vs. 0.525). Mediation analysis revealed that the association between LDL and patellar cartilage volume showed a statistically significant indirect effect through RFM (indirect effect =- 0.071, 95% CI -0.133 to-0.008, proportion mediated = 72.4%). Sex-stratified analyses showed consistent associations in females (P < 0.001) with no significant RFM × sex interaction (P = 0.68).
conclusionRFM outperforms BMI in predicting structural damage in KOA, particularly cartilage volume loss. The identified statistically significant indirect pathway (LDL → RFM → cartilage volume) provides a novel framework for understanding how dyslipidemia may be associated with cartilage degeneration through adiposity, offering potential targets for metabolic intervention strategies in KOA prevention.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.