Published in:
01-06-2015
Prevalence of cold sensitivity in patients with hand pathology
Published in: HAND | Issue 2/2015
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Background
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of cold sensitivity in patients with hand- and wrist-related diagnoses.
Methods
We included English-speaking adults who were more than 1 month following hand injury or onset of symptoms. Patients were asked if exposure to cold air or water provoked cold-related symptoms and to rank symptom severity (scale 0–10). Statistical analyses evaluated the relationships between the cold sensitivity and independent variables (age, gender, history of trauma, and time from injury/symptoms).
Results
There were 197 patients (mean age 49 ± 16 years): 98 trauma and 99 non-trauma cases. Cold-induced symptoms were reported by 34 %, with 10 % reporting severe symptoms. Exposure to cold air is the most common catalyst; mean severity score was 6.7 ± 2.2. Those with traumatic injuries compared to non-trauma diagnoses reported significantly more cold-induced symptoms (p = .04). Using backward linear regression, the significant predictors of cold symptom severity were trauma (p = .004) and time since onset (p = .003). Including only the trauma patients in the regression model, the significant predictor was time since injury (p = .005).
Conclusions
Cold-induced symptoms are reported by more than 30 % of hand-related diagnoses, and exposure to cold air was the most commonly reported trigger. The significant predictors of cold-induced symptoms are traumatic injuries and longer time from injury. This study provides evidence of the common problem of cold sensitivity in patients with hand pathology.
Level of Evidence: Prognostic Level II