Change in vertebral strength and bone mineral density in men and women over the year post-hip fracture:​ a subgroup analysis

Orwig, Denise L.; Kopperdahl, David; Keaveny, Tony; Magaziner, Jay; Hochberg, Marc

Affiliations

¹Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, School of Medicine, University of Maryland Baltimore, 660 West Redwood Street, Suite 200, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA

²O.N. Diagnostics, Berkeley, CA, USA

³Departments of Mechanical Engineering and Bioengineering, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA

⁴Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Maryland Baltimore, Baltimore, MD, USA

Abstract and keywords

Summary: This study examines changes in bone density and strength in the spine over the year after hip fracture to see if there are differences in the changes between men and women. Results show losses in the spine that may increase the risk of subsequent vertebral fractures, particularly for women.

Purpose: Compare changes over the first year post-hip fracture in vertebral bone mineral density (BMD) and compressive strength, measured from quantitative computed tomography (QCT) scans of the spine (T12-L1), between women and men.

Methods: QCT scans were performed on 37 participants (21 men and 16 women) at 2 and 12 months post-hip fracture as part of an ancillary observational study of hip fracture recovery in older community-dwelling men and women. Vertebral BMD and compressive strength were calculated using VirtuOst® (O.N. Diagnostics, Berkeley, CA). Unpaired t-tests were used to compare men and women with respect to baseline demographics, measurements of BMD and bone strength for the whole vertebra and the cortical and trabecular compartments, and any changes in these parameters between months 2 and 12.

Results: At 2 months post-fracture, there were no significant sex differences in any measurements of vertebral strength or BMD. Between months 2 and 12, vertebral strength decreased significantly in women (− 3.8%, p < 0.05) but not in men (− 2.3%, p < 0.20), vertebral trabecular BMD decreased similarly in both sexes (− 5.7% women; − 6.0% men), but cortical BMD did not change for either sex.

Conclusion: Despite the small sample size, these findings suggest that appreciable loss of vertebral trabecular bone can occur for both sexes in the year following hip fracture, which may increase the risk of subsequent vertebral fracture, particularly for women.

Keywords: Hip fracture; Bone mineral density; Gender; Finite element analysis; Vertebral strength

Links

DOI: 10.1007/s11657-021-00907-8

PubMed: 33619589

WoS: 000620575400001

History

Received: 2020-05-26

Accepted: 2021-02-05

Online: 2021-02-22

Cited Works (7)

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