Hand Osteoarthritis and Subclinical Cardiovascular Disease in Middle-Aged Women.

Objective: To determine subclinical cardiovascular disease (sCVD) in middle-aged women with clinically manifested hand osteoarthritis (HOA) and to improve the characterization of cardiovascular risk in this population. Design: We cross-sectionally evaluated the relationship between HOA and sCVD in 1,803 volunteers from the Mexican Teachers' Cohort. From 2012 to 2016, a subsample from Mexico City, the Northern state Nuevo León, and the Southern states Chiapas and Yucatán was invited for clinical evaluations, during which neurologists examined carotid arteries using ultrasound, and a standardized HOA questionnaire was also administered. HOA was defined as age ≥45 years, hand joint pain, and morning stiffness that lasted no longer than 30 minutes. sCVD was assessed using the intima-media thickness (IMT) and atherosclerotic plaques. Results: Among participants with a mean age of 51 years (±4), 18.4% met the criteria for HOA, and the prevalence of carotid atherosclerosis was 23.1%. After multivariable adjustment, women diagnosed with HOA had a 1.8% (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.3, 3.3) greater mean IMT than those without this joint disease. Similarly, women with HOA had 36% (95% CI 1.01, 1.84) higher odds of carotid atherosclerosis. Conclusions: HOA is associated with sCVD in middle-aged women. This relationship might be due to low-grade chronic inflammation; however, further research is required to clarify the underlying mechanisms.