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Genetic
factors may increase the risk of osteoarthritis, a finding
that could lead to new diagnostic measures and treatments
in the future, according to researchers at Boston University
School of Medicine.
The researchers
reported in Arthritis and Rheumatism on a study that included
684 original participants from The Framingham Study -- a long-term
study of osteoarthritis that began in 1948 -- and 793 of their
children.
Fifty
percent of the original participants - and 30 percent of their
offspring - had at least one hand joint affected by osteoarthritis.
By comparing
x-rays of the parents and children, researchers pinpointed
eight chromosomal sites that may harbor genes for hand osteoarthritis.
"Further
investigation of these regions using larger studies and finer
maps will be important to confirm linkage," the researchers
concluded.
Source:
Arthritis Week
of April 21, 2002
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