The influence of handedness, work and previous hand trauma is studied in 901 persons with Dupuytren's disease, collected in an epidemiological study of 15,950 citizens in a small, Norwegian town. Dupuytren's disease occurred in all occupational groups, but the prevalence was higher and the contracture more severe in people doing hard manual work than in people doing light or non manual work.
Persons with Dupuytren's disease had sustained previous hand trauma more frequently than the general population, and the interval between trauma and first sign of disease was usually a few years. Previous hand injuries were definitely more common among people doing hard manual work, but even when these were excluded from the material, Dupuytren's disease was still more common among people doing hard manual work, than in people doing light or non manual work.
The study has indicated that Dupuytren's disease in certain cases is precipitated and/or aggravated by both hard work and definite hand injury.
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