Clinical features of joint damage in patients with diabetes mellitus

Background. The development of diabetes-associated osteoarthritis is a complex and multifactorial process that depends on the type and compensation of diabetes mellitus (DM). Currently, the data about the role of various risk factors in the development of joint damage among the patients with DM are extremely contradictory. The purpose of the research was to study the clinical characteristics and risk factors of diabetes-associated osteoarthritis in the patients with type 1 DM (T1DM) and type 2DM (T2DM). Materials and methods. 556subjects were examined, who were divided into groups according to the type of DM, the presence, and the degree of severity of diabetes-associated osteoarthritis. Results. In the group of the subjects with T1DM, diabetes-associated osteoarthritis was diagnosed in 185 (74.5%) patients, and in patients with T1DM, joint damage was diagnosed in 241 (78.2%) persons. It was established that in the vast majority of the patients, diabetes-associated osteoarthritis was localized in the joints of the upper limbs. Oligoarthritis was frequent of the patients with T1DM, while polyarthritis is more common in patients with T2DM. It has been established that the probability of diabetes-associated osteoarthritis developing in patients with T1DM probably increases after the age of 35, with a body mass index (BMI) of more than 25.0kg/m2, a level of glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) of more than 8.0%, and duration of DM of more than 28 years, and in the patients with T1DM, it develops more often among the patients after the age of 61 years, with HbA1c higher than 8.2%, BMI 27.9 kg/m2 and higher, and duration of DM more than 14 years. Conclusions. Measures to prevent diabetes-associated osteoarthritis in patients with DM should be based on long-term compensation of the underlying disease and maintenance of the optimal body mass.