Takeaway
- This meta-analysis found a negative association between weekly or more frequent alcohol consumption and osteoarthritis (OA).
- However, this negative association was no longer observed when adjusted for confounding factors (body mass index, age, gender or smoking).
Why this matters
- Finding provides evidence to dispel notions that alcohol use may offer protection against OA.
Study design
- 29 observational studies including 25,192 patients with OA met eligibility criteria after a search across electronic databases.
- Funding: Versus Arthritis through Versus Arthritis Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Therapies Centre.
Key results
- A statistically significant negative association was seen between alcohol consumption and OA (OR, 0.79; 95% CI, 0.68-0.93; I2, 93.7%).
- The OR of weekly or more frequent alcohol consumption was 0.79 (95% CI, 0.65-0.97; I2, 94%).
- When grouped by covariates, alcohol consumption showed a negative association with (OR; 95% CI):
- radiographically diagnosed OA (0.83; 0.70-0.98);
- hand OA (0.80; 0.66-0.95);
- knee OA (0.85; 0.72-0.99; I2, 84%);
- North American ethnicity (0.91; 0.85-0.98); and
- female gender (0.72; 0.59-0.88; I2, 95%).
- Subgroup analysis of unadjusted data revealed an OR of 0.70 (95% CI, 0.55-0.89), but this disappeared after adjustment for any confounders (OR, 0.93; 95% CI, 0.78-1.10).
Limitations
- Heterogeneity among studies.
This clinical summary originally appeared on Univadis, part of the Medscape Professional Network.