Objective This study examined the associations of visceral adiposity index (VAI), body roundness index (BRI), and lipid accumulation product (LAP) with the risk, severity, and prognosis of knee osteoarthritis (KOA). The aim was to evaluate the clinical utility of these novel adiposity indices for early screening and prognostic assessment of KOA. Methods A total of 124 patients with clinically and radiographically confirmed KOA and 120 healthy individuals who underwent routine physical examinations during the same period were enrolled as the KOA and control groups, respectively. Baseline data were collected retrospectively from electronic medical records. KOA patients were further classified into mild, moderate, and severe subgroups based on K-L grading and were followed for 12 months. Results Compared with controls, the KOA group had significantly higher BMI, TG, TC, LDL-C, VAI, BRI, and LAP, and lower HDL-C ( p < 0.05). VAI, BRI, and LAP increased progressively with KOA severity ( p < 0.05), showing positive correlations (r = 0.608, 0.489, 0.551, p < 0.001), and were confirmed as independent risk factors ( p < 0.05). ROC analysis yielded AUCs of 0.775 (95% CI: 0.718–0.833; cutoff: 2.91) for VAI, 0.752 (95% CI: 0.692–0.813; cutoff: 5.21) for BRI, and 0.779 (95% CI: 0.722–0.836; cutoff: 48.58) for LAP, with a combined AUC of 0.880 (95% CI: 0.839–0.922). Survival time differed significantly across groups stratified by these cutoffs (VAI: χ 2 = 4.238; BRI: χ 2 = 3.956; LAP: χ 2 = 6.043; all p < 0.05). Conclusion This study concludes that VAI, BRI, and LAP are closely linked to KOA. Firstly, their levels are significantly raised in patients and show a positive correlation with disease severity, marking them as useful clinical indicators. Secondly, the combined detection of these indices provides superior predictive value for KOA and is associated with an unfavorable prognosis, suggesting their utility in comprehensive risk assessment.
Peng et al. (Thu,) studied this question.