Introduction: molecular and biomechanical basis of osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis has developed into the most common chronic disease in the highly industrialized nations. Moreover, because of the prevalence of the disease in the elderly, this trend occurs worldwide as a consequence of increasing longevity due to the overall improvement in living conditions and health status. In contrast, research on osteoarthritis is still financially marginalized within biomedical research, so that the molecular and biophysical bases for disease initiation and progression are largely unmapped. The following sequence of five reviews highlights a remarkable change in that body of knowledge taking place at the beginning of the World Health Organization (WHO) 'Bone and Joint Decade 2001-2010'. The data and ideas presented in these articles reflect to some extent the guidelines set up by the WHO and by the National Institutes of Health of the USA and therefore allow a glimpse into the directions that research in osteoarthritis will take in the future.