The development of a bone spur is fairly common after age 60, and is often, though not always, accompanied by pain or tenderness in the affected joint. Joints represent the intersection of bone, muscle, ligaments, and tendons, and are thus susceptible to injury from any of these sources. Often, such physical injuries or inflammation have the secondary effect of spur formation. In particular, there is a very striking relationship between occurrence of arthritis, which is essentially an inflammatory disease, and osteophytosis (spur development) in the problematic joint. In the knee, osteophyte development is closely associated with a loss of articular cartilage, which normally covers the inner joint surfaces and facilitates movement. Such loss often correlates with the body’s decreased ability to repair and regenerate cartilage with increased age. Additional pressures such as obesity, extreme activities, and misalignment also wear down the articular cartilage, and promote spur formation.
