Highlight
– Baseline radiographic chondrocalcinosis was present in ~5% of osteoarthritis-free knees and predicted subsequent development of radiographic knee osteoarthritis (pooled OR ≈ 1.75).
– Association remained statistically significant among knees with Kellgren-Lawrence grade 0 at baseline (pooled OR ≈ 1.77), supporting a possible etiologic role rather than simple co-occurrence.
