Bone Mineral Density, Anthropometric Indices, and the Prevalence of Osteoporosis in Northern (Beijing) Chinese and Southern (Hong Kong) Chinese Women--The Largest Comparative Study to Date.

This study was designed to compare the bone mineral density (BMD) and the prevalence of osteoporosis in community-dwelling women (aged 50-89) living in Northern (Beijing) and Southern (Hong Kong) China. Six thousand ninety-nine ambulatory Chinese women living in Hong Kong and 6302 mainland Chinese women living in Beijing were recruited for the study. The BMD was found to be 2.2% higher at the lumbar spine, 8.4% higher at the total hip, and 7.2% higher at the femoral neck in Beijing women than those in Hong Kong women. However, after adjustment for age, weight, and height, this trend was reversed so that the adjusted BMD at the lumbar spine, total hip, and femoral neck was 4.8%, 2.7%, and 1.4% higher in Hong Kong Chinese women than Beijing Chinese women, respectively. Body weight accounted for 13.3%, 14.6%, and 10.6% of the difference in BMD of lumbar spine, total hip, and femoral neck between the 2 populations. The prevalence of osteoporosis in Hong Kong women (24.9%) was found to be higher than that in Beijing women (20.3%). We conclude that osteoporosis is a major health problem in Chinese women, and in comparing BMD between subjects of the same ethnicity, body weight must be taken into account.

Minimally invasive total hip arthroplasty in a Chinese population.

From April 2003 to April 2004, the records of 24 patients who underwent primary total hip arthroplasty (THA) through an anterolateral mini-incision technique (MIS group) were reviewed. They were matched by diagnosis, gender, average age, and body-mass index to those with a traditional-incision technique (control group). The clinical significances in terms of operative time, blood loss, pain level and length of stay were compared. Mean patient age in the MIS group (12 patients) was 56 years; 9 patients were women. Average body mass index was 24.6. Mean operative time was 113 minutes. Average incision length was 8.3 cm for the initial incision. Fifty percent required extension of the incision length, which became 9 cm after wound closure. Mean length of hospital stay was 11 days. Average intraoperative blood loss was 504.2 mL and postoperative drain output was 491.7 mL. Average blood transfusion was 0.8 units. Ninety-two percent of patients required only one oral analgesic for pain control. Mean visual acuity score (VAS) was 1.8 on postoperative day 3. When compared with the control group (average incision length of 15), statistically significant differences (P < .05) were noted in terms of intraoperative blood loss, length of stay, and VAS. Anterolateral mini-incision technique for primary THA is a safe method without ignificant complications.

Impact of osteoarthritis on quality of life in a Hong Kong Chinese population.

OBJECTIVE: To measure the impact of osteoarthritis (OA) on quality of life in the Hong Kong Chinese population. METHODS: This was a cross sectional, retrospective, non-random, cohort design stratifying disease severity and presence or absence of joint prostheses. Patients with OA (n = 574; 136 men and 438 women) were recruited from rheumatology, family medicine, orthopedics, and geriatric medicine clinics. They were divided into 2 equal groups based upon disease severity (either American College of Rheumatology functional classes I and II, or III and IV). The 36-item Medical Outcomes Study Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36) and Western Ontario and McMaster Universities (WOMAC) OA Index were used. RESULTS: Patients with severe disease had lower mean scores in all SF-36 domains and higher mean scores in all WOMAC domains, indicating poorer quality of life. Scores in patients who had had arthroplasty were better than those with severe disease only in certain domains: role physical, general health, vitality, and mental health (SF-36); and pain (WOMAC). Women with OA had poorer scores compared to men for bodily pain, general health, and mental health after adjusting for age and disease severity. Low educational attainment was independently associated with poorer scores when disease severity was taken into account. CONCLUSION: OA has a significant impact on quality of life, only partly ameliorated by arthroplasty, as assessed by the SF-36 and WOMAC in this population.

Spinal aneurysmal bone cyst causing acute cord compression without vertebral collapse: CT and MRI findings.

Aneurysmal bone cyst (ABC) of the spine can cause acute spinal cord compression in young patients. We report the CT and MRI findings in a histology-proven case of spinal ABC presenting with sudden paraplegia. Typical features of a spinal ABC at the thoracic level with considerable extension into the posterior epidural space and cord compression were demonstrated. Special note was made of the disproportionately large longitudinal extent of the epidural component of the lesion. Associated vertebral collapse was absent. A fracture of the overlying cortex had probably allowed the lesion to decompress and track along the epidural space without significantly jeopardizing integrity of the osseous structures. This case illustrates a less frequently recognised mechanism of acute spinal cord compression by ABC.