Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis and is the leading cause of joint disability in the elderly. Osteoarthritis is a degenerative disease, or simply put, the aging of the joints. Osteoarthritis is also known as osteoarthropathy, osteophytes, and degenerative osteoarthropathy. It mostly affects the weight-bearing joints of the hands, knees, and lumbar spine. Of all the risk factors for the development of osteoarthritis, age is the most obvious, and the prevalence of the disease increases with age. This is due to the fact that after middle age, the function of muscles gradually decreases, together with the peripheral nerve function decreases, the reflexes weaken, and the nerve conduction time increases, resulting in uncoordinated nerve and muscle movements, which can easily cause joint injuries. At the same time, bone and joint cartilage increase with age, the inorganic content of bone increases, and the elasticity and toughness of bone is poorer. In addition, as we age, the blood flow supplying the joints decreases, the cartilage becomes thinner due to reduced nutrient supply, the cartilage matrix decreases and fibrosis occurs, and the cartilage is easily damaged. People with joint injuries and overuse are prone to osteoarthritis. Certain occupational labor, strenuous exercise, and injury can cause excessive pressure to form on the joints, which can lead to degenerative changes in the cartilage cells, and the degenerated cells in turn lead to reduced matrix synthesis, which exacerbates the destruction of the cartilage cells and creates a bad cycle. Even a seemingly minor injury, such as a misstep, can be the cause of osteoarthritis in an unprepared situation. The susceptibility of obese people to osteoarthritis was noted as early as the 1930s. Data collected from patients with osteoarthritis more than 30 years prior to the onset of the disease found that men who were more than 20% of the standard body weight at age 37 had a 2.1 times higher risk of osteoarthritis than the standard weight. Because the weight load is concentrated on the medial cartilage of the knee, this happens to be the common site of knee osteoarthritis in most obese individuals. The cause of obesity-induced osteoarthritis is related to changes in posture, gait and exercise habits caused by obesity, in addition to increased weight-bearing on the joints. Although hip arthritis is also a weight-bearing joint, but the incidence of hip osteoarthritis in obese people is not high; the distal interphalangeal joint of the hand is not a weight-bearing joint, but finger osteoarthritis increases with weight, so it is presumed that it may be related to the abnormalities of lipid, purine and sugar metabolism that coexist with obesity. Genetic factors should not be ignored, as congenital abnormalities and defects in joint structure (such as congenital hip dislocation, acetabular dysplasia, etc.), abnormalities in cartilage or bone metabolism, obesity and osteoporosis related to genetic factors can cause osteoarthritis. In short, elderly people, obese people, people with a history of joint damage, and people with a family history of osteoarthritis are prone to osteoarthritis.