Sports with bat or racket not tied to thumb-base osteoarthritis

A history of exposure to racket or bat sports (baseball/softball, racquetball/squash, badminton, table tennis, tennis [doubles/singles]) was based on self-reported recall data covering 3 age ranges (12–18 years, 19–34 years, 35–49 years).

Prevalent radiographic thumb-base osteoarthritis was defined as someone with Kellgren-Lawrence grade≥2 in the first carpometacarpal joint or scaphotrapezoidal joint at the OAI baseline visit. Symptomatic thumb-base osteoarthritis was defined as the presence of radiographic osteoarthritis and hand/finger symptoms.

The authors included a total of 2309 participants. The results showed that among 1049 men, 355 (34%) and 56 (5%) had radiographic or symptomatic thumb-base osteoarthritis, respectively; and among 1260 women, 535 (42%) and 170 (13%), respectively.

After adjusting for age, race, and education level, we found no statistically significant associations between a history of any racket or bat sport participation and thumb-base osteoarthritis.

Hence, the authors concluded that "within a community-based cohort, a self-reported history of participation in racket or bat sports was not associated with an increased odds of having radiographic or symptomatic thumb-base osteoarthritis in the dominant hand."

https://doi.org/10.4085/1062-6050-0208.21