The role of alcohol in the relationship between C-reactive protein and osteoarthritis

Despite the known inflammatory nature of osteoarthritis (OA) and the established role of C-reactive protein (CRP) as an inflammation marker, the influence of alcohol consumption on the CRP-OA relationship remains uncertain, with previous research providing conflicting results.
A study examined the potential moderating effect of alcohol on the association between CRP concentrations and self-reported OA. Researchers conducted a cross-sectional study involving 50,259 participants, all data collected from NHANES between 2005-2010 and 2015-2018. The relationship between CRP and OA was analysed.
A nonsignificant positive association between CRP concentration and prevalence of self-reported OA after adjusting for covariates was found in the raw dataset or 5 multiple imputed datasets. In the stratified analysis by alcohol drinking, for every 10 mg/L higher in CRP concentration, the prevalence of self-reported OA was higher by 13 % in non-drinkers. Conversely, for every 10 mg/L higher in CRP concentration, the prevalence of self-reported OA was lower by 59% in drinkers. Furthermore, the researchers discovered that the directions of the association between CRP concentrations (10 mg/L) and prevalence of self-reported OA [odds ratio (OR) < 1 in the drinking subgroup and OR > 1 in the no-drinking subgroup] were stable in both the main and sensitivity analyses. The significant interaction between CRP concentration and alcohol drinking on the prevalence of self-reported OA was shown in most of the analyses.
Alcohol consumption may be an interaction factor between CRP and self-reported OA. The researchers say that their findings are the first to highlight the importance of incorporating analysis of alcohol consumption differences into future studies of CRP and self-reported OA.
Source: He K, Huang H. The Significant Role of Alcohol in the Relationship between C-Reactive Protein and Self-Reported Osteoarthritis. J Nutr. 2024 Feb;154(2):600-609.