People with osteoarthritis of the knee could significantly reduce the amount of pain they are in if they wore a knee brace, a new study suggests.

Osteoarthritis, also known as degenerative joint disease, is the most common type of arthritis. The main symptoms are pain and stiffness. Most Irish people over the age of 55 have evidence of the condition at some joint in their body.

The most common weight-bearing joint affected by the condition is the knee.

According to UK researchers, osteoarthritis of the knee is on the increase because people tend to live longer now and obesity is much more common.

They looked specifically at osteoarthritis affecting the kneecap, which accounts for around one in five cases of knee pain. This pain is usually worse when people are going up and down stairs, squatting, kneeling or sitting for prolonged periods of time.

They followed the progress of 126 people who had all suffered arthritic knee pain in the previous three months. All were aged between 40 and 70 and they were monitored for a 12-week period.

The participants were given a lightweight flexible knee brace made of lycra that fitted around the knee and provided a support strap for the kneecap. They were either given the knee brace immediately or after six weeks.

The study found that after the first six weeks, the people who had worn the brace had seen significant improvements in relation to levels of pain, stiffness, muscle strength and function compared to those who had yet to try the brace out.

After 12 weeks, all of the participants were seeing significant improvements.

"Patients repeatedly told us that wearing the brace made their knee feel more secure, stable, and supported. Our theory is that these sensations gave the patient confidence to move the knee more normally and this helped in improving muscle strength, knee function and symptoms," explained Dr Michael Callaghan of the University of Manchester.

Current treatments for osteoarthritis of the knee are limited to pain relief and replacement of the knee joint.

"There's a pressing need for non-surgical interventions for knee osteoarthritis, and little attention has been paid to treatments particularly aimed at the kneecap, a major source of knee pain. We've shown that something as simple as a lightweight knee brace can dramatically improve the symptoms and function for people with this particular type of knee osteoarthritis," Dr Callaghan commented.

Details of these findings were presented at the Osteoarthritis Research Society International Meeting in Philadelphia.