BRIEF RESEARCH REPORT article
Front. Aging
Sec. Musculoskeletal Aging
This article is part of the Research TopicWomen at the Forefront of Musculoskeletal Aging ScienceView all 5 articles
Impact of Comorbidities in Patients with Erosive Hand Osteoarthritis (EHOA), a monocentric study
Provisionally accepted
Sara Bindoli1,2
Giacomo Cozzi1,2
Clarissa Benvoluti1,2Mariagrazia Lorenzin2Stefania Vio3,4
Paolo Sfriso1,2Marta Favero5
Roberta Ramonda1,2*- 1Department of Medicine (DIMED), Padova University Hospital, Padova, Italy, Padova, Italy
- 2Rheumatology Unit, Padova University Hospital, Padova, Italy, Padova, Italy
- 3Radiology Unit, Padova University Hospital, Padova, Italy, Padova, Italy
- 4Azienda Ospedale Universita Padova, Padua, Italy
- 5Internal Medicine 1, ULSS2 Marca Trevigiana, Ca' Foncello Hospital, Treviso, Italy, Treviso, Italy
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Objective. Erosive hand osteoarthritis (EHOA) is a severe and rapidly progressing form of osteoarthritis that has been linked to systemic comorbidities (i.e., metabolic bone and cardiovascular diseases). The object of this study is to retrospectively evaluate the impact of comorbidities (i.e., osteoporosis, diabetes and overweight) on the clinical course and radiographic findings in a cohort of EHOA patients. Design. This is a retrospective cross-sectional study. Patients underwent clinical assessments and completed the VAS scale, the AUSCAN and DREISER questionnaires. Metabolic, cardiovascular, and bone health data were collected. Radiographic features — osteophytes, joint space narrowing, malalignment, erosions, sclerosis, and subchondral cysts — were evaluated using the Altman system. Comorbidities were assessed using the Charlson Comorbidity Index, whereas metabolic syndrome, diabetes, and osteoporosis were defined according to the ATP III and WHO criteria. Statistical analysis was conducted via Spearman's correlation, using GraphPad Prism 9.1.0, with significance set at p < 0.05. Results. Eighty-seven patients (88.5% female, mean age 63.17 ± 8.85) were included. Among comorbidities, 76.8% had at least one risk factor; BMI correlated with joint space narrowing (r=0.22, p=0.04). Severity of femoral and lumbar osteoporosis correlated with AUSCAN and DREISER scores; FRAX scores significantly correlated with several radiographic features of EHOA; VAS correlated with swollen and painful joint count, with AUSCAN and DREISER scores and with osteophytosis. Disease duration correlated with overall radiographic damage. Conclusions. Cardiovascular and metabolic bone comorbidities, especially overweight and osteoporosis, appear to be associated with higher pain burden, functional impairment, and greater structural damage in EHOA patients.
Keywords: Chronic Pain, comorbidities, metabolic syndrome, Osteoarthritis, Osteoporosis
Received: 17 Nov 2025; Accepted: 27 Jan 2026.
Copyright: © 2026 Bindoli, Cozzi, Benvoluti, Lorenzin, Vio, Sfriso, Favero and Ramonda. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Roberta Ramonda
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