TY - JOUR T1 - Knuckle Cracking and Hand Osteoarthritis JF - The Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine JO - J Am Board Fam Med SP - 169 LP - 174 DO - 10.3122/jabfm.2011.02.100156 VL - 24 IS - 2 AU - Kevin deWeber AU - Mariusz Olszewski AU - Rebecca Ortolano Y1 - 2011/03/01 UR - http://www.jabfm.org/content/24/2/169.abstract N2 - Background: Previous studies have not shown a correlation between knuckle cracking (KC) and hand osteoarthritis (OA). However, one study showed an inverse correlation between KC and metacarpophalangeal joint OA. Methods: We conducted a retrospective case-control study among persons aged 50 to 89 years who received a radiograph of the right hand during the last 5 years. Patients had radiographically proven hand OA, and controls did not. Participants indicated frequency, duration, and details of their KC behavior and known risk factors for hand OA. Results: The prevalence of KC among 215 respondents (135 patients, 80 controls) was 20%. When examined in aggregate, the prevalence of OA in any joint was similar among those who crack knuckles (18.1%) and those who do not (21.5%; P = .548). When examined by joint type, KC was not a risk for OA in that joint. Total past duration (in years) and volume (daily frequency × years) of KC of each joint type also was not significantly correlated with OA at the respective joint. Conclusions: A history of habitual KC—including the total duration and total cumulative exposure—does not seem to be a risk factor for hand OA. ER -