We found no relation of arthralgia or joint pathology to C282Y, but compound heterozygotes had a significantly higher frequency of arthralgia (2.9; 1.0 to 9.3), chondrocalcinosis in hip joints (6.5; 1.8 to 22.3), and an increased number of osteophytes in knee (6.9+/-1.2, n = 5 vs 2.4+/-0.1) joints at a later age (>65 years).
The 124 C282Y homozygotes who filled out the written questionnaire and the 17 C282Y homozygotes who completed the physician double-blind interview reported no significantly higher rates of arthritis or joint pain, abdominal pain, arrhythmias, darkening of skin, or other symptoms traditionally associated with hemochromatosis compared with the 22,429 wild-type controls who filled out the written questionnaire and 29 wild-type controls who completed the double-blind interview.
The HFE H63D variant may explain, at least in part, the prevalence of arthralgia in multiple joints sites, chondrocalcinosis, and hand osteoarthritis in the general population.