Comparison of parathyroid hormone (1-34) and elcatonin in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis: an 18-month randomized, multicenter controlled trial in China.

BACKGROUND: Recombinant human parathyroid hormone (1-34) (rhPTH (1-34)) is the first agent in a unique class of anabolic therapies acting on the skeleton. The efficacy and safety of long-term administration of rhPTH (1-34) in Chinese postmenopausal women had not been evaluated. This study compared the clinical efficacy and safety of rhPTH (1-34) with elcatonin for treating postmenopausal women with osteoporosis in 11 urban areas of China. METHODS: A total of 453 postmenopausal women with osteoporosis were enrolled in an 18-month, multi-center, randomized, controlled study. They were randomized to receive either rhPTH (1-34) 20 µg (200 U) daily for 18 months, or elcatonin 20 U weekly for 12 months. Lumbar spine (L1-4) and femoral neck bone mineral density (BMD), fracture rate, back pain as well as biochemical markers of bone turnover were measured. Adverse events were recorded. RESULTS: rhPTH (1-34) increased lumbar BMD significantly more than did elcatonin after 6, 12, and 18 months of treatment (4.3% vs. 1.9%, 6.8% vs. 2.7%, 9.5% vs. 2.9%, P < 0.01). There was only a small but significant increase of femoral neck BMD after 18 months (2.6%, P < 0.01) in rhPTH groups. There were larger increases in bone turnover markers in the rhPTH (1-34) group than those in the elcatonin group after 6, 12, and 18 months (serum bone-specific alkaline phosphatase (BSAP) 93.7% vs. -3.6%; 117.8% vs. -4.1%; 49.2% vs. -5.8%, P < 0.01; urinary C-telopeptide/creatinine (CTX/Cr) 250.0% vs. -29.5%; 330.0% vs. -41.4%, 273.0% vs. -10.6%, P < 0.01). rhPTH (1-34) showed similar effect of pain relief as elcatonin. The incidence of clinical fractures was 5.36% (6/112) in elcatonin group and 3.2% (11/341) in rhPTH (1-34) group (P = 0.303). Both treatments were well tolerated. Hypercaluria (9.4%) and hypercalcemia (7.0%) in rhPTH (1-34) group were transient and caused no clinical symptoms. Pruritus (8.2% vs. 2.7%, P = 0.044) and redness of injection site (4.4% vs. 0, P = 0.024) were more frequent in rhPTH (1-34). Nausea/vomiting (16.1% vs. 6.2%, P = 0.001) and hot flushes (7.1% vs. 0.6%, P < 0.001) were more common in elcatonin group. CONCLUSIONS: rhPTH (1-34) was associated with greater increases in lumbar spine BMD and bone formation markers. It could increase femoral BMD after 18 months of treatment. rhPTH could improve back pain effectively. The results of the present study indicate that rhPTH (1-34) is an effective, safe agent in treating Chinese postmenopausal women with osteoporosis.

High cholesterol diet increases osteoporosis risk via inhibiting bone formation in rats.

AIM: To investigate the effects of high cholesterol diet on the development of osteoporosis and the underlying mechanisms in rats. METHODS: Female Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly separated into 3 groups: (1) the high cholesterol fed rats were fed a high cholesterol diet containing 77% normal diet food, 3% cholesterol and 20% lard for 3 months; (2) ovariectomised (OVX) rats were bilaterally ovariectomised and fed a standard diet; and (3) the control rats were fed the standard diet. Bone mineral density (BMD) of the rats was measured using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Serum levels of oestradiol (E2), osteocalcin (BGP) and carboxy-terminal collagen crosslinks (CTX) were measured using ELISA. Gene expression profile was determined with microarray. Mouse osteoblast cells (MC3T3-E1) were used for in vitro study. Proliferation, differentiation and oxidative stress of the osteoblasts were investigated using MTT, qRT-PCR and biochemical methods. RESULTS: In high cholesterol fed rats, the femur BMD and serum BGP level were significantly reduced, while the CTX level was significantly increased. DNA microarray analysis showed that 2290 genes were down-regulated and 992 genes were up-regulated in this group of rats. Of these genes, 1626 were also down-regulated and 1466 were up-regulated in OVX rats. In total, 370 genes were up-regulated in both groups, and 976 genes were down-regulated. Some of the down-regulated genes were found to code for proteins involved in the transforming growth factor beta (TGF-ß)/bone morphogenic protein (BMP) and Wnt signaling pathways. The up-regulated genes were found to code for IL-6 and Ager with bone-resorption functions. Treatment of MC3T3-E1 cells with cholesterol (12.5-50 µg/mL) inhibited the cell proliferation and differentiation in vitro in a concentration-dependent manner. The treatment also concentration-dependently reduced the expression of BMP2 and Cbfa1, and increased the oxidative injury in MC3T3-E1 cells. CONCLUSION: The results suggest a close correlation between hypercholesterolaemia and osteoporosis. High cholesterol diet increases the risk of osteoporosis, possible via inhibiting the differentiation and proliferation of osteoblasts.

Prevalence and risk factors of peripheral arterial disease in diabetic patients over 50 years old in China.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the prevalence of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) in China type 2 diabetic patients and to demonstrate the relationships between putative risk factors and PAD. METHODS: In total 1,397 type 2 diabetic patients aged 50 years and older were enrolled and determined ankle-brachial index (ABI) and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) in 15 Class III Grade A hospitals in 7 major cities of China. RESULTS: Mean patient age was 63.7 +/- 8.2 years and mean duration of diabetes mellitus was 9.39 +/- 7.4 years. Two hundreds and seventy-two (19.47%) patients were diagnosed as PAD by ABI < 0.9, 122 (18.37%) in male and 150 (20.46%) in female. PAD patients had a significantly longer duration of diabetes mellitus, higher hemoglobin A1c, and a significantly lower mean body mass index than non-PAD ones. Aging, smoking, and systolic blood pressure were found to be positively related with the prevalence of PAD. In terms of lipid profiles, no variable was found to relate with PAD. Notably, baPWV showed as the same significant guiding index for PAD, almost matched with ABI. CONCLUSIONS: PAD is a common complication in China type 2 diabetic patients. Therefore, PAD screening and treatment should be emphasized for diabetic patients with high risk factors.

[Analysis of peripheral arterial obstructive disease related factors among diabetic population aged > or = 50].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the peripheral arterial obstructive disease (PAD) related factors among diabetic population aged > or = 50 in China. METHODS: The clinical data of 1397 diabetic patients aged > or = 50 with at least one of the following risk factors: smoking, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia, from 15 Class III Grade A hospitals in 7 major cities of China were collected. Diagnosis of PAD was based on the ankle brachial index (ABI) < 0.9, and diagnosis of arteriosclerosis was based on pulse wave velocity (PWV) > 1400 cm/s. Regression studies were made to analyze the relations among PAD and various risk factors: age, sex, body mass index (BMI), smoking, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, history of cerebral vascular disease (CVD), history of ischemia heart disease (IHD) etc. RESULTS: The current prevalence rate of PAD was 19.47% among the 1397 patients, 18.3% (122/664) among the male patients, and 20.4% (150/733) among the female patients. The prevalence of PAD in the patients aged > or = 70 was as high as 31.9%. The duration of diabetes course was positively correlated with the prevalence of PAD (chi2 = 11.9, P = 0.0026). The ABI abnormality rate was 15.78% among those with a diabetic course of 5 years and was 23.84% among those with a diabetic course of 10 years. The abnormal ABI rate of the patients with CVD was 30.57%, significantly higher than that of hose without CVD (17.29%, chi2 = 21.49, P < 0.0001). The abnormal ABI rate of the patients with IHD was 24.64%, significantly higher than that of the patients without IHD (18.20%, chi2 = 5.85, P = 0.0155). The HbA1c value of the PAD patients was significantly higher than that of the patients without PAD (chi2 = 5.10, P = 0.0239) Odd risk analysis showed that age increase of 10 years increased the PAD risk by 1.64 times (OR = 1.6444, P = 0.0001). The PAD risk of the smokers was 1.68 times higher than that of the non-smokers (OR = 1.6852, P = 0.0001). Increase of 10 mm Hg in systolic blood pressure (SBP) increased the PAD risk by 1.19 times (OR = 1.1926, P = 0.01). The PAD risk of the patients with abnormal HbAlc was 2.44 times higher than that of the patients with normal HbA1c (OR = 2.4473, P = 0.0001). One-year's increase of the hypertension course increased the PAD risk by 1.02 times (OR = 1.0194, P = 0.03). Logistic analysis indicated that the relations among PWV and the risk factors were almost the same among ABI abnormality and the risk factors. CONCLUSION: Approximately one fifth of diabetic patients aged > or = 50 in China suffer from PAD. Age, course of diabetes, blood glucose level, SBP, IHD, and CVD are risk factors for PAD. Early intervention and treatment of hypertension and hyperglycemia, and quitting smoking are important in reducing the occurrence of PAD. ABI and PWV are not only diagnostic means for PAD, but also alarm guide indexes for cerebral vascular disease (CVD).