Depending on the research, 25-54 percent. people are breaking their joints, men more often than women. For some it is a nervous habit, for others this activity brings relief. Regardless of the motives, joint breaking is not the cause of arthritis, reports BBC News.
There are many ways to break the joints in the fingers. Some people pull out the tip of each finger until they hear a crack. Others clench their hand tightly into a fist, or bend their fingers back, breaking all fingers at once. Regardless of the way the cubes are broken off, the sound of the characteristic crack is produced in the same way. The space between the joints increases, causing microscopic bubbles to form by dissolved gases in the synovial fluid. The bubbles form large blisters, which are torn apart by the extra fluids filling the enlarged space. The crack cannot be repeated for approx. 15 minutes. This gives the space in the joints time to return to normal size and, for more gas, a willingness to form bubbles that can burst again.
From an engineering approach, repeated ankle fracture over many years could in theory damage the cartilage that covers the joint. The theoretical consequences of breaking out have been compared to the mechanical wear of marine propellers, but the evidence that the same is happening to human hands is very weak.
In fact, very little research has been done. Perhaps one of the best known is the 2009 study by the American physician Donald Unger, an Antinobelist, who for over 60 years has been breaking the joints in his left fingers while his right hand has been left intact. one of your hands, ”said Unger.
In a larger study conducted in Detroit in 1990, researchers examined the hands of 300 people over the age of 45. People breaking joints had a weak handshake, and 84 percent. of them had signs of hand swelling. The authors of the report argue that fractures in the fingers should be discouraged, but when asked the key question of whether a joint fracture could cause arthritis, the answer was no.
The latest research published last year is the most comprehensive because it not only looks at whether a person has ever broken a joint, but also how often they have done so. Studies have shown that there is no difference between the incidence of the disease in people who have broken their fingers and those who have not.
So where did the idea to link people breaking joints in their fingers and getting arthritis come from? It is true that people who suffer from this disease sometimes crack their joints because the cartilage that covers them has been damaged. However, joint failure is a consequence of the damage rather than its cause. Evidence of risk factors for arthritis include age, a family history of the disease, previous injury, or hard work with your hands.
There are isolated cases of finger joint fractures that cause thumb strain or ligament twisting, but these are very rare. Therefore, the only remark may be the words of Los Angeles doctors who say that “the morbid consequence of joint breaking seems only to be its unpleasant effect on the observer.” (PAP)
bep/ to/