Gardener H, Munger K, Chitnis T, Spiegelman D, Ascherio A
Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA, 02115, USA.
Mult Scler. 2009 May;15(5):587-92. doi: 10.1177/1352458509102622.
Left-handedness has been studied as a marker for in-utero exposure to sex steroid hormones, and an increased risk of autoimmune and immune disorders among left-handed individuals has been suggested.
This study examines the relationship between hand preference and risk of multiple sclerosis, a presumed autoimmune disorder of unknown etiology.
The study population comprised participants in the Nurses' Health Study, an ongoing prospective cohort study of 121,701 female nurses in the United States with followup from 1976 to 2002. The nurses were asked to report their natural hand preference (right, left, ambidextrous, forced to change).
During followup 210 incident cases with multiple sclerosis were confirmed. A 62% increased risk of multiple sclerosis was observed among women who were naturally left handed as compared to those who were naturally right handed (95% CI: 1.04-2.53).
This study suggests a modest increase in risk of multiple sclerosis among left-handed women. Further investigation of this relationship is suggested in other populations including both males and females. While the current results suggest that prenatal exposure to sex hormones may play a role in multiple sclerosis risk, direct examination of the relationship between in-utero hormone exposure and hand preference is necessary before any conclusions can be drawn.
左利手已被作为子宫内暴露于性甾体激素的一个标志进行研究，并且有人提出左利手个体患自身免疫性疾病和免疫紊乱的风险增加。
本研究探讨用手偏好与多发性硬化症风险之间的关系，多发性硬化症是一种病因不明的推测性自身免疫性疾病。
研究人群包括护士健康研究的参与者，这是一项对美国121,701名女性护士进行的正在进行的前瞻性队列研究，随访时间为1976年至2002年。这些护士被要求报告她们自然的用手偏好（右、左、双手并用、被迫改变）。
在随访期间，确诊了210例多发性硬化症新发病例。与自然右利手女性相比，自然左利手女性患多发性硬化症的风险增加了62%（95%置信区间：1.04 - 2.53）。
本研究表明左利手女性患多发性硬化症的风险略有增加。建议在包括男性和女性的其他人群中进一步研究这种关系。虽然目前的结果表明产前暴露于性激素可能在多发性硬化症风险中起作用，但在得出任何结论之前，有必要直接研究子宫内激素暴露与用手偏好之间的关系。
