Knees with chondrocalcinosis had increased pain and did not have higher synovitis scores on MRI compared to knees without chondrocalcinosis, a recent study found. Data were obtained from the Osteoarthritis Initiative (OAI) public use data sets. Researchers examined the relationship between chondrocalcinosis on baseline knee radiograph and pain at baseline and at 4 years. They found:

• Knees with chondrocalcinosis (n=162) more often had pain compared to knees without chondrocalcinosis (n=2,030) at baseline and had higher Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Arthritis Index (WOMAC) pain scores both at baseline (2.4 vs 1.8) and at 4 years (2.5 vs 1.6) as well as higher Intermittent and Constant Osteoarthritis Pain (ICOAP) intermittent pain scores at 4 years.
• There was no difference in MRI Osteoarthritis Knee Score (MOAKS) synovitis scores at baseline and at 4 years between the chondrocalcinosis group (n=102) and the control group (n=99).