Increased Risk of Coronary Artery Disease in People with a Previous Diagnosis of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: A Nationwide Retrospective Population-Based Case-Control Study.

Yi-Chuan Chang,Jen-Huai Chiang,Yu-Chen Lee,Ing-Shiow Lay

doi:10.1155/2019/3171925

Abstract

Background Existing literature suggests that an association exists between coronary artery disease (CAD) and carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS), but few researchers have explored whether CTS is a risk for CAD. Materials and Methods This large case-control study explored the association between CTS and CAD, using health insurance claims data from Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD) between January 2000 and December 2013. International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) diagnostic codes identified 70,622 patients with CAD (ICD-9-CM codes 410–414; cases); 70,622 patients without CAD were frequency-matched by age, sex, and index year of CAD and served as controls. Results The likelihood of a previous diagnosis of CTS (ICD-9-CM codes 354.0, 354.1) was significantly higher in the CAD group than in the comparison control group (crude OR: 1.75, 95% CI 1.63-1.89; p<0.0001; adjusted OR: 1.46, 95% CI 1.34-1.58; p<0.0001). Conclusion A significant positive correlation was observed between CAD and a previous diagnosis of CTS.

Highlights

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is caused by a thickening of the inner walls of the coronary arteries
The sex and age distributions were similar between the groups; diabetes mellitus (DM), hypertension, and hyperlipidemia were all significantly more prevalent among the cases compared with controls
This association persisted in logistic regression modeling adjusting for the potentially confounding variables of sex, age, DM, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia

Summary

Introduction

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is caused by a thickening of the inner walls of the coronary arteries. Inflammation plays an important role in chronic diseases such as hypertension and diabetes mellitus (DM), both of which are associated with an increased risk of CAD. Existing literature suggests that an association exists between coronary artery disease (CAD) and carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS), but few researchers have explored whether CTS is a risk for CAD. This large case-control study explored the association between CTS and CAD, using health insurance claims data from Taiwan’s National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD) between January 2000 and December 2013. The likelihood of a previous diagnosis of CTS (ICD-9-CM codes 354.0, 354.1) was significantly higher in the CAD group than in the comparison control group (crude OR: 1.75, 95% CI 1.63-1.89; p

Methods

Results

Conclusion