Bone Mass, Bone Microstructure and Biomechanics in Patients with Hand Osteoarthritis

ABSTRACT The impact of primary hand osteoarthritis (HOA) on bone mass, microstructure, and biomechanics in the affected skeletal regions is largely unknown. HOA patients and healthy controls (HCs) underwent high‐resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HR‐pQCT). We measured total, trabecular, and cortical volumetric bone mineral densities (vBMDs), microstructural attributes, and performed micro–finite element analysis for bone strength. Failure load and scaled multivariate outcome matrices from distal radius and second metacarpal (MCP2) head measurements were analyzed using multiple linear regression adjusting for age, sex, and functional status and reported as adjusted Z‐score differences for total and direct effects. A total of 105 subjects were included (76 HC: 46 women, 30 men; 29 HOA: 23 women, six men). After adjustment, HOA was associated with significant changes in the multivariate outcome matrix from the MCP2 head (p