Dupuytren's disease risk factors

• Published in: Journal of hand surgery, British volume British volume, 2004-10, Vol.29 (5), p.423-426
• Main Authors: Geoghegan, J.M., Forbes, J., Clark, D.I., Smith, C., Hubbard, R.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Age Distribution; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Case-Control Studies; case-control study; Databases as Topic; diabetes; Diabetes Mellitus - drug therapy; Diabetes Mellitus - epidemiology; Dupuytren Contracture - diagnosis; Dupuytren Contracture - epidemiology; Dupuytren Contracture - surgery; Dupuytren's disease; epilepsy; Female; general practice research database; Humans; Hypoglycemic Agents - therapeutic use; Insulin - therapeutic use; Male; Metformin - therapeutic use; Middle Aged; Office Visits - statistics & numerical data; Risk Factors; Sulfonylurea Compounds - therapeutic use; United Kingdom - epidemiology
• ISSN: 0266-7681; 1532-2211
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jhsb.2004.06.006

Dupuytren's is a common problem, but little is known about its aetiology. We have undertaken a large case-control study to assess and quantify the relative contributions of diabetes and epilepsy as risk factors for Dupuytren's in the community. Cases were patients with a diagnosis of Dupuytren's disease and, for each, two controls were individually matched by age, sex, and general practice. Our dataset included 821 cases and 1,642 controls. Five hundred and eighty-eight (72%) of the cases were men. The mean age at diagnosis was 62 (range 24–97) years. Diabetes was a significant risk factor for Dupuytren's disease ( OR = 1.75 ) and there was an increased risk for medicinally treated diabetes (metformin – R = 3.56 ; sulphonylureas – OR = 1.75 ) and particularly insulin controlled ( OR = 4.39 ) rather than diet-controlled diabetes. Epilepsy ( OR = 1.12 ) and anti-epileptic medications were not associated with Dupuytren's disease. Ascertainment bias in previous studies may explain the reported association with epilepsy.