Clin Osteol 2025; 30(3): 136-144

Prevalence of hand osteoarthritis in NÚRCH patientsOriginal contributions

Veronika Farská^{1, 2}, Soňa Wimmerová³, Ivan Rybár^{1, 4}

¹ Katedra reumatológie Lekárskej fakulty Slovenskej zdravotníckej univerzity a Národného ústavu reumatických chorôb, Piešťany

² Reumatologická ambulancia, ProSanus, Bratislava

³ Ústav biofyziky, informatiky a bioštatistiky, Fakulta verejného zdravotníctva, Slovenská zdravotnícka univerzita v Bratislave

⁴ Národný ústav reumatických chorôb, Piešťany

Objective: To determine the prevalence of clinically symptomatic hand osteoarthritis (HOA) among patients examined at NÚRCH Piešťany.

Methods: The patient sample (n = 6 319) included individuals evaluated at NÚRCH Piešťany during the first half of 2019. The prevalence of clinically symptomatic HOA and radiographic involvement of specific hand joint sites were assessed, with particular attention given to erosive and trapezioscaphoid osteoarthritis. The results were statistically analyzed using Pearson correlation tests.

Results: Among 6 319 outpatients, the prevalence of clinically symptomatic HOA was 15.98 % (1 010 patients). The prevalence of erosive HOA was 6.52 % (n = 65). Radiographic involvement of the CMC I joints was significantly lower than that of the DIP and PIP joints (p < 0.05) across all patient groups. DIP joint involvement was significantly more prevalent in women than in men (p < 0.001). Concurrent involvement of the DIP, PIP, and CMC I joint was rare and observed predominantly in patients over 60 years of age. HOA prevalence increased with age across all joint locations up to the age of 80, after which it declined - consistent with previously published data.

Conclusion: This study provides data on the prevalence of clinically symptomatic HOA, focusing on radiographic involvement of individual hand joint groups. The findings support the hypothesis that functional impairment and overall physical disability are closely related to the specific anatomical location of osteoarthritic involvement. As our analysis is based on a population referred for rheumatologic evaluation, the findings may not fully reflect the situation in an unselected population; therefore, further research should focus on older patients in primary care settings.

Keywords: carpometacarpal region, erosive hand osteoarthritis, hand osteoarthritis, prevalence.

Published: September 1, 2025  Show citation