Many people take the use of their hands for granted until simple daily tasks become painful.
Opening a jar, turning a key, writing with a pen, using a phone, or fastening buttons can suddenly become difficult when the small joints in the hands become stiff and sore.
For millions of people around the world, this is the reality of hand osteoarthritis, a common condition that can make everyday life frustrating and reduce independence.
Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis. It develops when the smooth cartilage that covers the ends of bones inside a joint gradually wears away.
Cartilage normally acts as a cushion, allowing bones to move smoothly against each other.
As this protective layer becomes thinner, the bones begin to rub together more, leading to pain, stiffness, swelling, and reduced movement. Over time, joints may become enlarged or change shape, making it even harder to perform daily activities.
Hand osteoarthritis affects the small joints of the fingers, thumb, and wrist. The condition becomes more common with age, but it is not simply a normal part of getting older. Women, especially after menopause, are affected much more often than men.
Researchers believe that changes in hormone levels may partly explain this higher risk. Studies suggest that by the age of 85, almost one in every two women and about one in every four men will develop hand osteoarthritis.
Living with hand osteoarthritis can affect far more than comfort. Persistent pain and stiffness may make it difficult to prepare meals, work, write, garden, carry shopping bags, or enjoy hobbies. Some people also lose grip strength, making it harder to hold objects securely. As the disease progresses, many people find that pain interferes with sleep and reduces their overall quality of life.
Current treatments mainly focus on reducing symptoms rather than stopping the disease. Doctors often recommend pain-relieving medicines, anti-inflammatory creams, gentle hand exercises, splints, and lifestyle changes. While these approaches can help some people, many continue to experience ongoing pain, and none of these treatments can reliably prevent the joints from becoming more damaged over time.
Researchers have therefore been searching for better treatment options. A team from Monash University and Alfred Health in Australia recently investigated whether an older medicine could provide a new answer. The study was led by Professor Flavia Cicuttini, an expert in joint disease.
The medicine is methotrexate, a drug that has been widely used since the 1980s to treat rheumatoid arthritis and several other inflammatory diseases. Unlike osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease in which the body’s immune system attacks healthy joints. Methotrexate works by reducing inflammation and calming this immune response.
The researchers wanted to know whether methotrexate could also help people with hand osteoarthritis, especially those whose joints showed signs of inflammation. To test this idea, they carried out a clinical trial.
Participants with hand osteoarthritis received either 20 milligrams of methotrexate once a week or a placebo tablet that contained no active medicine. The researchers then monitored their symptoms over six months.
The results were encouraging. People who received methotrexate reported greater improvements in pain and stiffness than those taking the placebo. Their symptoms continued to improve during the study, suggesting the medicine may provide ongoing relief rather than only short-term benefits.
Although the findings are promising, the researchers say more work is needed. Future studies will examine how long the benefits last, whether different doses work better, and whether methotrexate can slow or prevent further damage inside the joints. Larger studies will also help confirm the treatment’s safety and effectiveness for a wider range of patients.
The discovery may be especially important for women after menopause, who experience hand osteoarthritis more often than men. If future research confirms these results, methotrexate could become an affordable treatment option that helps many people remain active and independent for longer.
The research was published in the medical journal The Lancet.
If you care about pain, please read studies about how to manage gout with a low-purine diet, and a guide to eating right for arthritis.
For more health information, please see recent studies about the link between processed foods and chronic diseases, and avoid these 8 foods to ease arthritis pain.
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