LAUSR

Hand osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the most common degenerative joint disorders seen in the adult population. The prevalence of hand OA increases with age and is more common among women than in men. The distal interphalangeal, proximal interphalangeal, or first carpometacarpal joints of the hand are typically affected (Bijlsma et al., 2011). The common symptoms include activity-related pain, brief periods of joint stiffness in morning or after rest, loss of joint movement, reduced grip strength, joint instability, and joint crepitations. Pain coupled with joint stiffness and reduced grip strength results in activity restriction (Elliott et al., 2007; Stamm et al., 2009). With the global demographic aging trend, the burden of OA is expected to be more in the near future. Currently, there is no definitive cure for OA, and the treatment goals are to reduce pain and minimize loss of physical function. Pharmacological management is mainly symptomatic, and surgical treatments are recommended only for severe cases of OA. Hence, nonpharmacological approaches play a significant role in managing OA. The recommended nonpharmacological therapies include patient education, weight reduction, and exercises (Fernandes et al., 2013; McAlindon et al., 2014). Even though the current evidence supports the use of exercise interventions for knee and hip OA, these interventions’ effects on hand OA remain uncertain. Hence, there is a need to examine the available evidence on the effectiveness of exercises on hand OA to generate practice recommendations. This summary is based on a Cochrane systematic review, that investigated the effect of exercises on clinical outcomes of patients with hand OA (Østerås et al., 2017).