Article
Smoking as risk factor for carpal tunnel syndrome: a birth cohort study
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Authors
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Sina Hulkkonen
- Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
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Juha Auvinen
- University of Oulu, Oulun Yliopisto, Finland
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Jouko Miettunen
- University of Oulu, Oulun Yliopisto, Finland
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Jaro Karppinen
- University of Oulu, Oulun Yliopisto, Finland
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Jorma Ryhänen
- Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| Published: | February 6, 2020 |
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Outline
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Objectives/Interrogation: The aim of this study was to determine whether smoking is associated with carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) from two perspectives: if maternal smoking and offspring's own smoking affect the offspring's risk for CTS.
Methods: The study sample consisted of the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966 (N=8703). Prenatal data collected from mothers at 24 to 28 weeks of gestation and 31-year follow-up data were used, combined with data for hospitalization due CTS from the Finnish Care Register for Health Care during follow-up from 1997 to 2016. Hazard ratio (HR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) and population attributable risk (PAR) for smoking was calculated and adjusted for body mass index and socio-economic status.
Results and Conclusions: During the follow-up between 1997 and 2016, altogether 308 participants were diagnosed with CTS (Table 1 [Tab. 1]).
Maternal smoking was not associated with increased risk of CTS in offspring. Offspring's own smoking was associated with elevated risk for CTS, especially in women. Before the age of 31 years, regular smoking of ten or less pack years (HR=1.51, 95% CI=1.09-2.10) and over ten pack years (HR=1.82, 95% CI=1.15-2.89) among women and over ten pack years (HR=1.93, 95% CI=1.16-3.21) among men was associated with increased risk for CTS compared to non-smokers. PAR for smoking was 13.9% for men and 20.9% for women (Figure 1 [Fig. 1]).
In this birth cohort study, we found that maternal smoking was not, but offspring's own smoking was, associated with elevated risk for CTS.
