Osteochondropathy refers to a disease ("-pathy") of the bone and cartilage.

However, it is more common to refer to these conditions as one of the following:

- chondropathy (disease of the cartilage)

- A bone disease is also called an "osteopathy", but because the term osteopathy is often used to describe a healthcare approach, use of the term can cause some confusion.

Kashin–Beck disease occurrence is limited to 13 provinces and two autonomous regions of China. It has also been reported in Siberia and North Korea, but incidence in these regions is reported to have decreased with socio-economic development. In China, KBD is estimated to affect some 2 million to 3 million people across China, and 30 million are living in endemic areas. Life expectancy in KBD regions has been reported to be significantly decreased in relation to selenium deficiency and Keshan disease (endemic juvenile dilative cardiomyopathia).

The prevalence of KBD in Tibet varies strongly according to valleys and villages.

Prevalence of clinical symptoms suggestive of KBD reaches 100% in 5- to 15-year-old children in at least one village. Prevalence rates of over 50% are not uncommon. A clinical prevalence survey carried out in Lhasa prefecture yielded a figure of 11.4% for a study population of approximately 50,000 inhabitants. As in other regions of China, farmers are by far the most affected population group.

The cause of KBD remains controversial. Studies of the pathogenesis and risk factors of KBD have proposed selenium deficiency, inorganic (manganese, phosphate...) and organic matter (humic and fulvic acids) in drinking water, fungi on self-produced storage grain (Alternaria sp., Fusarium sp.), producing trichotecene (T2) mycotoxins.

Most authors accept that the cause of KBD is multifactorial, selenium deficiency being the underlying factor that predisposes the target cells (chondrocytes) to oxidative stress from free-radical carriers such as mycotoxins in storage grain and fulvic acid in drinking water.

In Tibet, epidemiological studies carried out in 1995–1996 by MSF and coll. showed that KBD was associated with iodine deficiency and with fungal contamination of barley grains by Alternaria sp., Trichotecium sp., Cladosporium sp. and Drechslera sp. Indications existed as well with respect to the role of organic matters in drinking water.

A severe selenium deficiency was documented as well, but selenium status was not associated with the disease, suggesting that selenium deficiency alone could not explain the occurrence of KBD in the villages under study.

An association with the gene Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor Gamma Coactivator 1 Beta (PPARGC1B) has been reported. This gene is a transcription factor and mutations in this gene would be expected to affect several other genes.