The sodium does not affect joint pain and functional activity of knee osteoarthritis patients

BACKGROUND: The sodium may aggravate synovial inflammation and cartilage thinning. This incidence can cause joint pain and reduce functional activity. Not many people know the effect of sodium on the incidence of osteoarthritis. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to determine the relationship between sodium in the body and knee joint pain which results in functional activity. METHODS: The quantitative descriptive study used accidental sampling. The study was conducted at three outpatient polyclinic orthopedics of hospitals and was approved by the Health Ethics Committee. All data were collected during the interview. The Semi-Quantitative Food Frequency Questionnaire and the Nutrisurvey Indonesia 2007 application were used as a tool to collect daily sodium intake (mg). Knee joint pain score was measured using the Visual Analog Scale (VAS), while functional body activity was measured using the Western Ontario McMaster Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC). The Pearson and Spearman test (P<0.05) were used as a correlation test. RESULTS: 80 subjects were recruited according to the inclusion criteria. Characteristics of the subjects were pre-elderly (32, 40%), women (74, 92.5%), body mass index ≥30 kg/m(2) (54, 67.5%) and occupation (43, 53.75%). Average sodium intake = 2090.78±1084.33 mg, VAS score = 6.28±1.95 and WOMAC score = 32.65±14.88. The correlation sodium, VAS, and WOMAC were not significant (P=0.196, P=0.372). CONCLUSIONS: Increased sodium intake is not associated with knee joint pain and functional body activity.