The prevalence of Dupuytren's disease in patients with diabetes mellitus

BackgroundDupuytren's disease (DD) is a fibroproliferative hand disorder associated with various medical conditions, including diabetes mellitus (DM). The reported prevalence of DM among DD patients varies widely, primarily due to small sample sizes in previous studies.MethodsThis was a retrospective cohort study using data from the TriNetX Research Database. We analyzed the overall prevalence of DD between 2010 and 2020, comparing the DM, type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM), and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) cohorts. Within the DM group, patients were further categorized based on hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) values and prescribed anti-diabetic agents (insulin or metformin). We compared the prevalence of DD diagnosis in each group using prevalence ratios and differences.ResultsThere is a higher prevalence of DD in patients with T2DM than in patients with T1DM (relative risk [RR]: 1.641; 95% confidence interval [CI]: [1.356, 1.986]). Among patients with diabetes, there is a higher prevalence of DD in those taking insulin compared to those taking metformin (RR: 0.801, 95% CI: [0.774, 0.83]). The prevalence of DD varies depending on HbA1c levels, with a prevalence of 0.463% in patients having levels within the diabetic range, while lower prevalences of 0.392% and 0.416% are found in patients with prediabetes or uncontrolled diabetes, respectively.ConclusionsThis study provides further insight into the relationship between DM and DD. These findings may be attributed to the increased accumulation of advanced glycosylated end products (AGEs) in patients with diabetes. Future research exploring the connection between AGE accumulation and DD development may enhance our understanding of the relationship between DD and DM. Plain language summaryDupuytren's disease (DD), commonly known as Dupuytren's contracture, is a disorder of the hand that has been associated with various conditions including diabetes. The relationship between the two has not been studied in large populations; therefore, we used a large electronic medical record database to better understand the association between these two conditions. Our analyses show that within the population of patients with diabetes, DD is more common in patients with adult-onset diabetes and patients with blood sugar levels corresponding to moderate diabetes. This finding may be related to biochemical changes in the body as a result of elevated blood sugar levels found in these patients. Future investigation into this biochemical change may contribute further to our understanding of the relationship between these two conditions. Ganesan et al. examine electronic health record data from over 100,000 patients with Dupuytren's disease, a condition characterized by contracture of the hand, to look at its association with diabetes. They report a higher prevalence of Dupuytren's disease in type 2 than in type 1 diabetes and in patients with HbA1c levels within the diabetic range.

Automated summary

This retrospective cohort study analyzed the prevalence of Dupuytren's disease (DD) in diabetic patients using data from the TriNetX Research Database. The study found that patients with type 2 diabetes had a higher prevalence of DD compared to patients with type 1 diabetes. Among diabetic patients, those taking insulin had a higher prevalence of DD compared to those taking metformin. The prevalence of DD also varied based on HbA1c levels.