Report of investigations on adult hand osteoarthritis in Fengjiabao Village, Asuo Village, and Qiancheng Village

Abstract

Objective: To understand the relationship between fluorosis and adult osteoarthritis through the investigation of fluorosis-afflicted villages.

Methods: X-ray radiography of right hands was performed on 227 adults over the age of 40 from fluorosis-afflicted villages, and adult osteoarthritis was diagnosed using accumulated scores based on the obtained results.

Results: The identification rate of osteoarthritis in fluorosis-afflicted regions was 59.03%, and the mean accumulated score was 3.85, both significantly higher than those for the control population (identification rate was 23.6%, mean accumulated score was 0.72); patients with osteoarthritis caused by fluorosis accounted for a considerable portion of the osteoarthritis population.

Conclusions: Fluorosis may lead to osteoarthritis, and also acts as a confounding factor of adult Kashin-Beck disease (KBD) in a portion of patients.