Pettersen PS, Neogi T, Magnusson K, et al. - According to findings, central sensitization seemed not to be driven by a person’s overall amount of structural or inflammatory hand osteoarthritis (OA) pathologies. Although greater signs of central sensitization were exhibited by patients with erosive hand OA, the small differences indicate that central sensitization was primarily explained by other factors than joint pathologies.

• Patients with hand OA in the Nor-Hand study had bilateral hand radiography and ultrasound done.

• Central sensitization was evaluated with pressure pain thresholds (PPT) at remote sites (wrist, trapezius and tibialis anterior muscles) and temporal summation (TS).

• In 291 patients, Kellgren-Lawrence, greyscale synovitis and power Doppler activity sum scores were not related to lower PPTs at remote sites.

• Lower PPTs at the wrist and tibialis anterior as well as greater TS were found in persons with erosive hand OA vs those with non-erosive disease.

• There were no links for symptom duration.