Osteoartheritis knee and barefoot running

The pain is not the problem; the mechanism behind the pain is. The knee is just a conduit, and problems in the ankle and hip will cause pain at the knee.

A good sports chiropractor who does myofascial release may be helpful to you and demystify why your knees are problematic. Most people with knee problems have mechanical problems that created those problems. If that were not all the case, everyone would just have arthritic knees which of course is not the case.

My guess is that you are having problems in the back of the knees and in the calves. My experience is that some people do better barefoot and others may not.

If you are looking at a barefoot gait to solve your problem, since one size does not fit all, a professional may be quite helpful to guide you to having knees that work better (providing the joints are reasonably healthy)