Abdominal obesity increases the risk of hip fracture. A population-based study of 43,000 women and men aged 60-79 years followed for 8 years. Cohort of Norway.

BACKGROUND: The question as to whether abdominal obesity has an adverse effect on hip fracture remains unanswered. The purpose of this study was to investigate the associations of waist circumference, hip circumference, waist-hip ratio, and body mass index with incident hip fracture. METHODS: The data in this prospective study is based on Cohort of Norway, a population-based cohort established during 1994-2003. Altogether 19,918 women and 23,061 men aged 60-79 years were followed for a median of 8.1 years. Height, weight, waist and hip circumference were measured at baseline using standard procedures. Information on covariates was collected by questionnaires. Hip fractures (n = 1,498 in women, n = 889 in men) were identified from electronic discharge registers from all general hospitals in Norway between 1994 and 2008. RESULTS: The risk of hip fracture decreased with increasing body mass index, plateauing in obese men. However, higher waist circumference and higher waist-hip ratio were associated with an increased risk of hip fracture after adjustment for body mass index and other potential confounders. Women in the highest tertile of waist circumference had an 86% (95% CI: 51-129%) higher risk of hip fracture compared to the lowest, with a corresponding increased risk in men of 100% (95% CI 53-161%). Lower body mass index combined with abdominal obesity increased the risk of hip fracture considerably, particularly in men. CONCLUSION: Abdominal obesity was associated with an increased risk of hip fracture when body mass index was taken into account. In view of the increasing prevalence of obesity and the number of older people suffering osteoporotic fractures in Western societies, our findings have important clinical and public health implications.

Hip fracture and other predictors of anti-osteoporosis drug use in Norway.

UNLABELLED: This study aims to find predictors of anti-osteoporosis drug (AOD) use. Known risk factors of osteoporosis, i.e., age, hip fracture, and corticosteroid use were found to be predictors of AOD use, in addition to a number of other drugs used. Higher socioeconomic position did not favor the use of AOD. INTRODUCTION: This study deals with studying predictors of anti-osteoporosis drug treatment in Norwegian women and men. METHODS: All Norwegian women and men≥50 years were included (n=1,407,392). Data were taken from different data sources, (1) the Norwegian Prescription Database (drug use in 2004-2005); (2) the Nationwide Census 2001 (marital status, education and resident county); (3) the National Hip Fracture Database (hip fractures 2003-2005); and (4) the National Population Register (date of death/emigration). We estimated the hazard ratios (HR) for incident treatment by Cox proportional hazard regression. RESULTS: In 2005, 10,332 women (1.5%) and 1,387 men (0.2%) were new users of anti-osteoporosis drugs (incident treatment). Age was a statistically significant predictor of incident treatment in both women and men, with HR ranging from 1.7 to 3.2 (per 10 years). A middle educational level in men strongly predicted incident treatment [HR 2.0 (CI 1.1-3.8)], but not in women after full adjustment. A previous hip fracture, increasing number of drugs used and use of corticosteroids were all predictors of incident treatment in both genders after adjustments. Corticosteroid use [HRwomen=4.0 (CI 3.8-4.2)] had a higher HR for incident treatment than hip fracture [HRwomen=2.0 (CI 1.8-2.3)]. Marital status and area of residency were not predictors of incident treatment in either gender, after adjustments. The predictors of prevalent treatment were only slightly different from incident treatment in 2005. CONCLUSIONS: Age, previous hip fracture, number of drugs used, and use of corticosteroids were positively related to treatment in both genders. In men, a middle educational level predicted treatment.

Hip fracture incidence is decreasing in the high incidence area of Oslo, Norway.

UNLABELLED: This study reports a significant decrease in age-adjusted incidence rates of hip fracture for women in Oslo, Norway, even compared with data from 1978/1979. Use of bisphosphonate may explain up to one third of the decline in the incidence. INTRODUCTION: The aims of the present study were to report the current incidence of hip fractures in Oslo and to estimate the influence of bisphosphonates on the current incidence. METHODS: Using the electronic diagnosis registers and lists from the operating theaters of the hospitals of Oslo, all patients with ICD-10 codes S72.0 and S72.1 (hip fracture) in 2007 were identified. Medical records of all identified patients were reviewed to verify the diagnosis. Age- and gender-specific annual incidence rates were calculated using the population of Oslo on January 1, 2007 as the population at risk. Data on the use of bisphosphonates were obtained from official registers. RESULTS: A total number of 1,005 hip fractures, 712 (71%) in women, were included. The age-adjusted fracture rates per 10,000 for the age group >50 years were 82.0 for women and 39.1 for men in 2007, compared with 110.8 and 41.4 in 1996/1997, 116.5 and 42.9 in 1988/1989, and 97.5 and 34.5 in 1978/1979, respectively. It was estimated that the use of bisphosphonates may explain up to 13% of the decline in incidence in women aged 60-69 years and up to 34% in women aged 70-79 years. CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of hip fractures in women in Oslo has decreased significantly during the last decade and is now at a lower level than in 1978/1979. This reduction was not evident in men. The incidence of hip fractures in Oslo is, however, still the highest in the world.

Outdoor air pollution, bone density and self-reported forearm fracture: the Oslo Health Study.

UNLABELLED: Air pollution is associated with several adverse health outcomes and increased mortality. In the Oslo Health Study, an association between long-term outdoor air pollution exposure and bone health was suggested in men aged 75/76 years, but not in younger men or in women. INTRODUCTION: Associations have been found between air pollution and a range of diseases, but few have studied whether bone health differs according to the concentration of air pollution. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between indicators of air pollution and bone health. METHODS: Self-reported forearm fracture was assessed in men and women 75/76 and 59/60 years (n = 5,976) participating in the Oslo Health Study 2000-2001. In subsamples of the participants (n = 1,039), we studied the relation between air pollution and forearm bone mineral density (BMD) measured by single X-ray absorptiometry. Exposure to air pollution (particulate matter (PM(10) and PM(2.5)) and nitrogen dioxide (NO(2))) at each participant's home address was estimated from 1992 to 2001. RESULTS: We found no associations between air pollution and self-reported forearm fractures or BMD in men aged 59/60 years or in women. In men aged 75/76 years, an increment of 10 units in PM(2.5) was associated with a reduction in distal forearm BMD of 64 mg/cm(2) (p < 0.05), and with an increased prevalence of forearm fracture after the age of 50 years among current smokers, OR = 7.4 (p < 0.05). Similar patterns of associations were suggested for PM(10) and NO(2). CONCLUSIONS: In this study, bone health was not associated with long-term exposure to air pollution in women and in men 59/60 years of age. However, a negative association was suggested in elderly men. Further studies with improved measures of air pollution are warranted.

Does body height reduction influence interpretation of lung function in COPD patients?

Vertebral deformities are prevalent in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients and may cause excessive loss of height. As height is used for calculating reference values for pulmonary function tests, larger than normal height reduction could cause overestimation of lung function. In this cross-sectional study of 465 COPD patients and 462 controls, we explored how often lung function is misinterpreted due to height reduction in COPD patients, and whether the number or severity of vertebral deformities correlate with height reduction. Measured height was compared to recalled tallest height (RTH) and height calculated from arm span (ASH) to assess height reduction. Vertebral deformities were assessed from radiographs and pulmonary function was assessed using standard formulae. Height reduction was frequent in both the study and control groups, and increased with the number and severity of vertebral deformities. When using current measured height, lung function was overestimated in a significant proportion of COPD patients at relatively modest height reductions. The effects were smallest for forced expiratory volume in 1 s and forced vital capacity, and most pronounced for total lung capacity and residual volume. Therefore, we propose that in COPD patients with excessive height reduction, one might use RTH or ASH in calculating predicted values. Furthermore, such patients should be evaluated for co-existing vertebral deformities and osteoporosis.

High prevalence of vertebral deformities in COPD patients: relationship to disease severity.

Bone mineral density decreases with advancing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) severity, but it is not known whether this is reflected in higher fracture rates. The present authors wanted to compare the prevalence of vertebral deformities in COPD patients with those in a population-based reference group to determine whether the number of deformities was related to the severity of COPD and how far the use of oral corticosteroids (OCS) influenced the prevalence of deformities. In the present cross-sectional study of 465 COPD patients and 462 controls, vertebral deformities were found in 31% of the COPD patients and 18% of the controls. In subjects who had never or sporadically used OCS, deformities were found in 29% of the COPD patients and 17% of the controls. In females, the average number of vertebral deformities was almost two-fold when COPD severity increased from Global Initiative of Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease stage II to III. In males, the use of OCS had a small but significant influence. Prevalence of vertebral deformities was significantly higher in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients than in the controls. In females, the average number of deformities was related to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease severity even after adjustment for other known risk factors. The difference between patients and controls remained significant even in those who never or sporadically used oral corticosteroids.

Change in the use of hormone replacement therapy and the incidence of fracture in Oslo.

UNLABELLED: Fracture incidence in Oslo decreased from the 1970s to the 1990s in younger postmenopausal women, but not in older women or in men. Concurrently, hormone replacement therapy increased considerably. Using data from the Oslo Health Study, we estimated that roughly half the decline might be attributed hormone replacement therapy. INTRODUCTION: Between the late 1970s and the late 1990s, the incidence of hip fracture and distal forearm fracture decreased in younger postmenopausal women in Oslo, but not in elderly women or in men. The purpose of this report is to evaluate whether the decreased incidence was coherent with trends in use of hormone replacement therapy (HRT). METHODS: Data on estrogens were collected from official drug statistics, data on fractures from published studies and data on bone mineral density (BMD) from the Oslo Health Study. RESULTS: The sale of all estrogens increased 22 times from 1979 to 1999, and the sub-category estradiol combined with progestin increased 35 times. In the corresponding period the incidence of distal forearm fracture in women aged 50-64 years decreased by 33% and hip fracture by 39%. Based on differences in BMD between users and non-users of HRT, we estimated that up to half of this decline might be due to HRT. CONCLUSIONS: The reduction in fracture incidence in postmenopausal women in Oslo occurred in a period with a substantial increase in the use of HRT. Future surveillance will reveal whether the last years' decline in use of HRT will be translated into increasing fracture rates.

Epidemiology of distal forearm fractures in Oslo, Norway.

UNLABELLED: The population of Oslo has the highest incidence of hip fracture reported. The present study shows that the overall incidence of distal forearm fractures in Oslo is higher than in other countries and has not changed significantly when comparing the incidence of 1998/99 with 1979. INTRODUCTION: The population of Oslo has the highest incidence of hip fracture reported. The present study reports the incidence of distal forearm fracture in Oslo and the fracture rates of immigrants. METHODS: Patients aged > or = 20 years resident in Oslo sustaining a distal forearm fracture in a one-year period in 1998/99 were identified using electronic diagnosis registers, patient protocols, and/or X-ray registers of the clinics in Oslo. Medical records were obtained and the diagnosis verified. The age- and sex-specific incidence rates were calculated and compared with those for 1979. Data on immigrant category and country of origin of the patients were obtained. RESULTS: The age-adjusted fracture rates per 10,000 for the age group > or = 50 years were 109.8 and 25.4 in 1998/99 compared with 108.3 and 23.5 in 1979 for women and men, respectively (n.s.). The relative risk of fracture in Asians was 0.72 (95% CI 0.53-1.00) compared with ethnic Norwegians. CONCLUSIONS: The overall incidence of distal forearm fractures in Oslo is higher than in other countries and has not changed significantly when comparing the incidence of 1998/99 with 1979. Furthermore, the present data suggest that Asian immigrants in Oslo have a slightly lower fracture risk than ethnic Norwegians.

Cross-sex pattern of bone mineral density in early onset gender identity disorder.

Hormonally controlled differences in bone mineral density (BMD) between males and females are well studied. The effects of cross-sex hormones on bone metabolism in patients with early onset gender identity disorder (EO-GID), however, are unclear. We examined BMD, total body fat (TBF) and total lean body mass (TLBM) in patients prior to initiation of sex hormone treatment and during treatment at months 3 and 12. The study included 33 EO-GID patients who were approved for sex reassignment and a control group of 122 healthy Norwegians (males, n=77; females, n=45). Male patients (n=12) received an oral dose of 50 mug ethinylestradiol daily for the first 3 months and 100 mug daily thereafter. Female patients (n=21) received 250 mg testosterone enantate intramuscularly every third week. BMD, TBF and TLBM were estimated using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). In male patients, the DXA measurements except TBF were significantly lower compared to their same-sex control group at baseline and did not change during treatment. In female patients, the DXA measurements were slightly higher than in same-sex controls at baseline and also remained unchanged during treatment. In conclusion, this study reports that body composition and bone density of EO-GID patients show less pronounced sex differences compared to controls and that bone density was unaffected by cross-sex hormone treatment.

Outdoor air pollution and bone mineral density in elderly men - the Oslo Health Study.

UNLABELLED: The association between bone mineral density (BMD) and outdoor air pollution has not previously been explored. In this study including 590 elderly men, total body BMD was inversely associated with indicators of air pollution. Further studies to address any relation between air pollution and BMD and bone fracture are warranted. INTRODUCTION: The relation between air pollution and bone mineral density (BMD) is unknown. Based on higher fracture rates and more osteoporosis in urban compared to rural populations, this exploratory study aimed at investigating the association between indicators of air pollution and BMD. METHODS: In an osteoporosis sub-study of the population-based Oslo Health Study (2000-2001) BMD of total body and total hip (mg/cm(2)) was measured by DXA in 590 men 75-76 years old. Exposure to air pollution (particulate matter (PM(10) and PM(2.5)) and nitrogen dioxide (NO(2))) at each participant's home address was estimated from 1992 to 2001. RESULTS: Air pollution was inversely associated with total body BMD, whereas no significant association was found for total hip BMD. The adjusted odds ratio (OR) [95% confidence interval] for low total body BMD (Z-score

Low bone mineral density is related to severity of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) appears to be associated with low bone mineral density (BMD). BMD loss can be accelerated by a number of factors associated with COPD, but it is not known whether COPD itself has a direct effect. Our aim was to investigate in a cross-sectional study whether COPD patients have lower BMD than healthy individuals, and whether the severity of the disease affects BMD. Eighty-eight COPD patients attending a rehabilitation program were classified into stages II, III and IV using GOLD criteria. BMD was measured by dual X-ray absorptiometry in lumbar spine (L2-4), femoral neck (FN) and total body (TB). Values were converted to Z-scores (adjusted for age and sex). Associations between Z-scores and steroid use, body mass index, pack-years and six-min walking distance were analyzed. The Z-scores (mean and (CI)) for all patients were for L2-4: -0.6 (-0.9, -0.3), FN: -0.8 (-1.0, -0.5) and TB: -0.5 (-0.8, -0.2). All scores were significantly different from those of a control population (p<0.001). For all three variables (ZL2-4, ZFN, ZTB) there were significant differences between the stages. The difference for ZL2-4 was still significant after adjustment for risk factors. We conclude that BMD is low in COPD patients and decreases with increasing severity of the disease. Low BMD may to some extent be a disease-specific effect.

Young patients with hip fracture: a population-based study of bone mass and risk factors for osteoporosis.

INTRODUCTION: Hip fracture in young patients is rare. The present study was aimed to clarify the comorbidity pattern and reveal relevant risk factors for osteoporosis and fracture in this patient group. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Using electronic diagnosis registers and lists of the operating theatres for the Oslo hospitals, patients with new hip fracture during two 1-year periods from May 1994 through April 1995 and from May 1996 through April 1997 were identified. All patients age 20-49 years at the time of fracture were included (n=49), and a detailed medical history was recorded. Thirty-two of the patients volunteered for examination and completed a questionnaire and interview to reveal risk factors for osteoporosis. Data from the Oslo Health Study served as reference material. Bone mineral density (BMD) was measured using dual x-ray absorptiometry, and Z-scores were calculated using healthy subjects from Oslo as reference. RESULTS: Of the patients identified, the median age was 40 years (range 25-49), and 63% were men. In 65% of the patients, the fracture occurred after a fall at the same level, in 16% it occurred after a fall from a higher level, and in 18% it occurred in a traffic accident. Twenty percent of the patients had a history of alcohol or drug abuse, 39% had neuromuscular diseases, and 12% had endocrine diseases. The patients examined had significantly more risk factors for osteoporosis than the reference population. The BMD expressed as Z-score for L2-4 was -1.0+/-0.9 (mean +/- SD; p<0.001), for femoral neck was -1.5+/-1.0 (p<0.001), and for total body was -1.3+/-1.1 (p<0.001). BMD was significantly lower than in controls for patients sustaining low-energy and high-energy trauma. There was a negative correlation between the total number of risk factors and BMD for lumbar spine (r=-0.35, p<0.05), femoral neck (r=-0.37, p=0.04), and total body (r=-0.55, p=0.001), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The majority of the young patients with hip fracture have a history of low-energy trauma, comorbidity predisposing for falls or decreased bone strength, as well as several risk factors for osteoporosis. The BMD was significantly lower than in the reference population regardless of the trauma mechanism.

Low BMD is less predictive than reported falls for future limb fractures in women across Europe: results from the European Prospective Osteoporosis Study.

We have previously shown that center- and sex-specific fall rates explained one-third of between-center variation in upper limb fractures across Europe. In this current analysis, our aim was to determine how much of the between-center variation in fractures could be attributed to repeated falling, bone mineral density (BMD), and other risk factors in individuals, and to compare the relative contributions of center-specific BMD vs. center-specific fall rates. A clinical history of fracture was assessed prospectively in 2451 men and 2919 women aged 50-80 from 20 centers participating in the European Prospective Osteoporosis Study (EPOS) using standardized questionnaires (mean follow-up = 3 years). Bone mineral density (BMD, femoral neck, trochanter, and/or spine) was measured in 2103 men and 2565 women at these centers. Cox regression was used to model the risk of incident fracture as a function of the person-specific covariates: age, BMD, personal fracture history (PFH), family hip fracture history (FAMHIP), time spent walking/cycling, number of 'all falls' and falls not causing fracture ('fracture-free') during follow-up, alcohol consumption, and body mass index. Center effects were modeled by inclusion of multiplicative gamma-distributed random effects, termed center-shared frailty (CSF), with mean 1 and finite variance theta (theta) acting on the hazard rate. The relative contributions of center-specific fall risk and center-specific BMD on the incidence of limb fractures were evaluated as components of CSF. In women, the risk of any incident nonspine fracture (n = 190) increased with age, PFH, FAMHIP, > or =1 h/day walking/cycling, and number of 'all falls' during follow-up (all P < 0.074). 'Fracture-free' falls (P = 0.726) and femoral neck BMD did not have a significant effect at the individual level, but there was a significant center-shared frailty effect (theta = 0.271, P = 0.001) that was reduced by 4% after adjusting for mean center BMD and reduced by 19% when adjusted for mean center fall rate. Femoral trochanter BMD was a significant determinant of lower limb fractures (n = 53, P = 0.014) and the center-shared frailty effect was significant for upper limb fractures (theta = 0.271, P = 0.011). This upper limb fracture center effect was unchanged after adjusting for mean center BMD but was reduced by 36% after adjusting for center mean fall rates. In men, risk of any nonspine fracture (n = 75) increased with PFH, fall during follow-up (P < 0.026), and with a decrease in trochanteric BMD [RR 1.38 (1.08, 1.79) per 1 SD decrease]. There was no center effect evident (theta = 0.081, P = 0.096). We conclude that BMD alone cannot be validly used to discriminate between the risk of upper limb fractures across populations without taking account of population-specific variations in fall risk and other factors. These variations might reflect shared environmental or possibly genetic factors that contribute quite substantially to the risk of upper limb fractures in women.

Local and national electronic databases in Norway demonstrate a varying degree of validity.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the present study was to examine the validity of local and national electronic databases using medical records as gold Standard. STUDY DESIGN AND SETTING: All hospital admissions with ICD 9-code 820.X (hip fracture) in a 1-year period were identified in the electronic discharge registers of the hospitals in Oslo and in the national electronic database (The Norwegian Patient Register). Medical records for all patients identified by the discharge registers and the logbooks of the operating theater of the hospitals were retrieved, and the diagnosis was verified. RESULTS: Compared with the total number of fractures confirmed in medical records, the electronic discharge register of one of the hospitals underestimated the number of fractures by 46%, whereas the two other overestimated the number by 17% and 19%. For the national electronic database, an overall overestimation of 19% was found. CONCLUSION: The present findings question the validity of electronic databases and thus have implications for epidemiologic studies.

Quantitative ultrasound and bone mineral density: discriminatory ability in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and controls with and without vertebral deformities.

BACKGROUND: Quantitative ultrasound (QUS) is a reliable tool for discriminating between subjects with and without vertebral deformities in postmenopausal osteoporosis. Less is known about osteoporosis caused by inflammatory diseases or corticosteroid use. OBJECTIVES: (1). To compare in patients with rheumatoid arthritis the ability of QUS and dual energy x ray absorptiometry (DXA) to discriminate between those with and without vertebral deformities; (2). to explore whether the results are similar in population based controls. METHODS: Standardised lateral radiographs of the spine were obtained from 210 patients with rheumatoid arthritis aged over 50 years and 210 individually matched controls. Vertebral deformities were assessed morphometrically and semiquantitatively. All participants underwent bone measurements by DXA (Lunar Expert) and QUS (Lunar Achilles+). Receiver operating curve (ROC) analysis was used to compare the discriminating ability of BMD and QUS measurements in patients and controls with and without vertebral deformities. Analyses were repeated in patients stratified according to corticosteroid use. RESULTS: For all bone measurements except lumbar spine in the rheumatoid arthritis group, BMD discriminated significantly between the patients with and without vertebral deformities, and the results were similar to those obtained in controls. Among current corticosteroid users, neither QUS nor DXA could discriminate between subjects with and without vertebral deformities. CONCLUSIONS: These findings support QUS as an alternative tool for identifying patients at risk of having vertebral deformities in rheumatoid arthritis, although results should be interpreted with caution in current users of corticosteroids.

Bone mineral density in patients with inflammatory bowel disease: a population-based prospective two-year follow-up study.

BACKGROUND: Bone loss and osteoporosis are commonly reported in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), especially Crohn disease (CD). The aims of the present study were to evaluate changes in bone mineral density (BMD) in IBD patients during a 2-year follow-up period, and to investigate the role played by possible contributing factors in bone loss. METHODS: Sixty patients with CD and 60 with ulcerative colitis (UC) were studied initially. Fifty-five CD and 43 UC patients were re-examined after 1 year, and 50 CD and 44 UC patients after 2 years. Lumbar spine, femoral neck and total body BMD were measured by dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), and Z scores were obtained by comparison with age-matched and sex-matched healthy subjects. Biochemical variables were assessed at inclusion and at the 1-year follow-up visit. RESULTS: Mean BMD values were unchanged in both CD and UC patients. In patients with repeated measurements, significant differences in Z scores (delta Z score) were found for femoral neck and total body in CD and for total body in UC. Significant bone loss occurred in 11 CD (22%) and 12 UC (27%) patients. A significant increase in BMD was found in 21 CD (42%) and 20 UC (46%) patients. In CD patients the initial BMD values for lumbar spine and femoral neck were inversely correlated to BMD changes at the same sites and the change in body mass index (BMI) was positively correlated to change in the total body BMD. C-reactive protein was significantly higher in CD patients with bone loss. Biochemical markers of bone metabolism could not be used to predict BMD changes. Although it was not significant, there was a relationship between corticosteroid therapy and bone loss in CD. CONCLUSIONS: Only minor changes in BMD were observed in both CD and UC patients during a 2-year period. The multifactorial pathogenesis of bone loss in IBD makes it difficult to assess the importance of each single contributing factor. However, our results indicate that disease activity and corticosteriod therapy are involved in bone loss in CD patients.

Does hip strength analysis explain the lower incidence of hip fracture in the People's Republic of China?

To explore whether there are ethnic differences in calculated hip strength that might explain the low incidence of hip fracture in China, we used Lunar DPX 'beta' version of hip strength analysis (HAS) and hip axis length (HAL) programs to compare hip geometry, calculated strength and densitometric values from Chinese subjects in Shenyang to those of Caucasian subjects in Oslo and Leuven participating in the European Prospective Osteoporosis Study (EPOS). Subjects were 210 Chinese and 403 Caucasian men and women aged 53-77 years. Parameters investigated included bone mineral density (BMD), bone mineral content (BMC), bone area (BA), cross-sectional moment of inertia (CSMI) and section modulus (both indicating strength and rigidity of the femoral neck), HAL, neck length (NL), neck diameter, tensile stress (Tstress) and compressive stress (Cstress) (indicating the stress in the femoral neck at its weakest cross section arising from walking or a standard fall, respectively), safety factor (SF, indicating the resistance to fracture for forces generated during walking) and fall index (FI, indicating the resistance to fracture from force generated during a fall in the greater trochanter). The Chinese men and women were significantly shorter and lighter than their Caucasian counterparts (P<0.01) and had significantly lower BMD, BMC and BA of the femoral neck (P<0.01). After adjusting for BA, weight and height, there was no significant ethnic difference in either gender in BMC. CSMI and section modulus were significantly lower, and HAL, NL and neck diameter were significantly shorter in the Chinese men and women (P<0.01). These differences all remained after adjusting for weight and height. There were no significant differences in Tstress, Cstress, SF and FI between ethnic groups in either gender. Most of the parameters of calculated hip strength in the Chinese subjects were similar to or poorer than those in the Caucasian subjects. There was no evidence to indicate that Shenyang Chinese have superior BMD or BMC or better calculated hip strength. The short HAL and NL of the population, however, could be an independent factor contributing to the low incidence of hip fracture.

Consequences of hip fracture on activities of daily life and residential needs.

The aim of this study was to describe the consequences of hip fracture with respect to changes in residential needs and the ability to perform activities of daily life. Patients 50 years and older admitted to the two largest hospitals of Oslo with a hip fracture during the period May 1996 through April 1997 were identified. In November 1997 a questionnaire on residential needs, activities of daily life, hip pain and health status was sent to the patients still alive (n = 767). After reminders, the questionnaires of 593 patients (77%) were included. Logistic regression analysis was applied to assess items associated with functional limitation and need for residential care. The proportion of patients living in nursing homes increased from 15% before to 30% after the hip fracture, and men were twice as likely to move into a nursing home than women. Of the patients living in their own homes before the hip fracture, 6% of those < 75 years compared with 33% of those > 85 years had to move to nursing home after hip fracture. The proportion of patients walking without any aid decreased from 76 to 36%, and 43% of the patients lost their prefracture ability to move outside on their own. More than a fourth of the patients (28%) lost their ability to cook their own dinner after sustaining hip fracture. The probability of these events increased with increasing age. The probability of reporting inferior health status and for having hip pain that affected sleep after the fracture was unrelated to age. Many patients sustaining a hip fracture, and in particular the oldest patients, have reduced ability to perform activities of daily life.

Self reported non-vertebral fractures in rheumatoid arthritis and population based controls: incidence and relationship with bone mineral density and clinical variables.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the incidence of self reported non-vertebral fractures after RA diagnosis between female patients with RA and control subjects, and to explore possible associations between non-vertebral fractures and bone mineral density (BMD), disease, and demographic factors. METHODS: 249 women (mean age 63.0 years) recruited from a county register of patients with RA and population controls (n = 249) randomly selected after matching for age, sex, and residential area were studied. Data on previous non-vertebral fractures were obtained from a detailed questionnaire, and BMD was measured at the hip and spine. RESULTS: 53 (21.3%) patients with RA had had 67 fractures after RA diagnosis, the corresponding numbers for controls were 50 (20.1%) and 60 (odds ratio (OR) for paired variables for overall fracture history 1.09, 95% CI 0.67 to 1.77). The overall fracture rates per 100 patient-years were 1.62 and 1.45, respectively, but self reported hip fractures were increased in RA (10 v 2, OR 9.0, 95% CI 1.2 to 394.5). Patients with a positive fracture history had longer disease duration, were more likely to have at least one deformed joint, and had lower age and weight adjusted BMD than those with no fracture history. In logistic regression analysis, fracture history was independently related to BMD only. CONCLUSIONS: With the probable exception of hip fractures, non-vertebral fractures do not seem to be a substantial burden in RA. Similar independent relationships between levels of BMD and fracture history were found in patients with RA and in population based controls.

Prevalence of osteoporosis using bone mineral measurements at the calcaneus by dual X-ray and laser (DXL).

Using manufacturers reference data the prevalence of osteoporosis using a T-score threshold of -2.5 for heel measurements by DXL technology was compared to dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) measurements at the femoral neck, spine and forearm. The prevalence of osteoporosis for women aged 50 years or older was 28% for DXL measurements of the heel bone and 30, 22 and 32% for DXA measurements of the lumbar spine, femoral neck and forearm respectively. Bone mineral density (BMD) was also measured by DXL in the heel bone and by DXA in spine and femoral neck in 251 women (mean age 62 +/- 14.5 years) when attending an osteoporosis clinic. The sensitivity and specificity for osteoporosis and osteopenia for the DXL measurements were calculated assuming a low T-score at the spine or femoral neck as the criterion for a correct diagnosis. The sensitivity was found to be 80% for osteoporosis and 82% for osteopenia and the specificity was 82% for osteoporosis and 89% for osteopenia. We conclude that DXL measurement at the heel bone, using a T-score threshold of -2.5 for classification of osteoporosis, is in concordance with the World Health Organization (WHO) definition of osteoporosis.