Family history of arthritis, osteoporosis, and carpal tunnel syndrome and risk of these conditions among U.S. adults.

Objective: The aim was to estimate odds ratios of associations between family history of arthritis, osteoporosis, and carpal tunnel syndrome and prevalence in a real-world population, uncovering family histories of related conditions that may increase risk due to shared heritability, condition pathophysiology, or social/environmental factors.

Methods: Using data from 156,307 participants in the All of Us (AoU) Research Program, we examined associations between self-reported first-degree family history of 5 common types of arthritis (fibromyalgia, gout, osteoarthritis (OA), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)), osteoporosis, and carpal tunnel syndrome and prevalence. We evaluate associations across 7 conditions and performed stratified analyses by race and ethnicity, sex, socioeconomic differences, body mass index, and type of affected relative.

Results: Over 38% of AoU participants reported a family history of any arthritis, osteoporosis, or carpal tunnel syndrome. Adults with a family history of any arthritis, osteoporosis, and carpal tunnel syndrome exhibited 3.68 to 7.59 (4.90, on average) odds of having the same condition, and 0.70 to 2.10 (1.24, on average) odds of having a different condition. The strongest associations observed were between family history of OA and prevalence of OA (OR 7.59, 95%CI 7.32-7.88), and family history of SLE and prevalence of SLE (OR 6.34, 95%CI 5.17-7.74). We additionally uncover race and ethnicity and sex disparities in family history associations.

Conclusion: Family history of several related conditions was associated with increased risk for arthritis, osteoporosis, and carpal tunnel syndrome, underscoring the importance of family history of related conditions for primary prevention.