Zeng C, Bennell K, Yang Z, et al. - The present study was conducted to evaluate the relation of the knee, hip, and hand osteoarthritis to the risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE) and investigate joint replacement as a potential mediator. Researchers performed three cohort studies applying data from The Health Improvement Network. They matched up to five individuals without osteoarthritis to each case of the incident knee (n=20,696), hip (n=10,411), or hand (n=6,329) osteoarthritis by age, sex, entry time, and body mass index. They evaluated the relation of osteoarthritis to VTE (pulmonary embolism and deep vein thrombosis) using a multivariable Cox proportional hazard model. The results give the first evidence that knee or hip osteoarthritis, but not hand osteoarthritis, was correlated with an elevated risk of VTE, and such a relationship was partially mediated through knee or hip replacement in this large population-based cohort study.