Effective therapy of glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis with medroxyprogesterone acetate.
The effect of long-acting medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) on the trabecular bone density in patients with glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis (GCO) was evaluated. Thirteen steroid-dependent asthmatic male patients with GCO were administered 200 mg MPA intramuscularly at 6-week intervals and 1 g of elemental calcium daily for a period of 1 year. Ten additional matched steroid-dependent asthmatic male patients received 1 g of elemental calcium daily (controls). All 23 patients involved in the study had vertebral trabecular bone densitometry (TBD) by quantitative computed tomography (QCT) at baseline and at 6 and 12 months into the study. A 17% increase in TBD was found in the MPA-treated patients at 1 year (from 68.5 +/- 5 to 80.2 +/- 4 mg K2HPO4/cc) in contrast to the control group who experienced a 21% decrease in TBD during the same period of time (from 80.5 +/- 7 to 63.7 +/- 8 mg K2HPO4/cc) (T = 6.90, P = 0.0001 df = 21). There were no significant changes in other parameters followed during the study in the MPA-treated group (serum calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, PTH, alkaline phosphatase, triglycerides, total and HDL cholesterol, urinary excretion of calcium, phosphate, creatinine) except for a decrease in the serum luteinizing hormone (LH) and testosterone (P less than 0.01) as well as of the hydroxyproline-creatinine ratio (P less than 0.01). The results lend support to the hypothesis of a progesterone-glucocorticoid competitive antagonism at the bone level, though other possibilities can be entertained, and suggest MPA as an effective therapy for glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis in men.
Grecu
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Department of Medicine (Endocrinology and Metabolism), Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Martinez, California.
Weinshelbaum
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Simmons
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D000368:Aged; D001249:Asthma / Q000188:drug therapy; D015519:Bone Density / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D007986:Luteinizing Hormone / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D008525:Medroxyprogesterone / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D017258:Medroxyprogesterone Acetate; D008875:Middle Aged; D010024:Osteoporosis / Q000097:blood / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000188:drug therapy*; D011241:Prednisone / Q000009:adverse effects*; D013739:Testosterone / Q000097:blood; D013997:Time Factors
D013739:Testosterone; D007986:Luteinizing Hormone; D017258:Medroxyprogesterone Acetate; D008525:Medroxyprogesterone; D011241:Prednisone