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Hand osteoarthritis

What's new

Added 2024 EULAR classification criteria for hand osteoarthritis.

Guidelines

Key sources

The following summarized guidelines for the management of hand osteoarthritis are prepared by our editorial team based on guidelines from the American College of Rheumatology (ACR 2020) and the European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR 2019).
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Medical management

General principles: as per EULAR 2019 guidelines, set controlling symptoms as the primary goal for the management of patients with hand OA, such as pain and stiffness, and to optimize hand function, in order to maximize activity, participation and QoL.
B
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  • Non-opioid analgesics

  • Opioids

  • Duloxetine

  • Chondroitin sulfate

  • Agents with no evidence for benefit

Nonpharmacologic interventions

Self-management programs: as per ACR 2020 guidelines, advise participating in self-efficacy and self-management programs in patients with hand OA.
A

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  • Physical therapy

  • Orthoses

  • CBT

  • Alternative and complementary therapies

Therapeutic procedures

Intra-articular corticosteroids
As per ACR 2020 guidelines:
Consider administering intra-articular corticosteroid injections in patients with hand OA.
C
Consider preferring intra-articular corticosteroids over other injections in patients with hand OA.
C

More topics in this section

  • Other intra-articular injections

Surgical interventions

Indications for surgery: as per EULAR 2019 guidelines, consider performing surgery in patients with structural abnormalities when other treatment modalities have not been sufficiently effective in relieving pain.
C
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Patient education

Patient education: as per EULAR 2019 guidelines, educate all patients with hand OA on the following:
nature and course of the disease
B
self-management principles
B
treatment options
B
ergonomic principles
B
pacing of activity
B
use of assistive devices.
B

Follow-up and surveillance

Follow-up: as per EULAR 2019 guidelines, ensure a long-term follow-up in patients with hand OA adapted to the patient's individual needs.
B