title: Aetiology and presenting symptoms in male osteoporosis.
abstract: In order to analyse the clinical characteristics and the principal causes of osteoporosis in men, 81 osteoporotic males from an out-patient rheumatology department were studied. Bone mass assessment, automated biochemical profile and biochemical markers of bone turnover were performed in all patients, and hormonal measurements were taken when a specific aetiology was not readily apparent. Sixty-three men (78%) had secondary osteoporosis and 18 (22%) primary osteoporosis. Secondary causes of osteoporosis included hypogonadism (12 patients), corticosteroid therapy (10 patients) and alcoholism (10 patients); the remaining patients had various causes of osteoporosis. Eighteen patients had primary osteoporosis, eight of them with associated hypercalciuria. Normocalciuric patients showed lower 25-hydroxyvitamin D and 1-25-hydroxyvitamin D levels than the control group, whereas hypercalciuric patients had lower parathyroid hormone and renal threshold for phosphate excretion. In 69 patients (85%), back pain was the chief complaint. Forty-five of these 69 patients (65%) had chronic back pain and 24 (35%) had subacute episodes. Fifty per cent of the patients with chronic back pain had vertebral fractures. Both patients with and without chronic back pain were found to have a similar number of vertebral fractures. In conclusion, male osteoporosis is frequently associated with major risk factors. Patients with primary osteoporosis may have associated hypercalciuria or decreased vitamin D levels. However, not all the patients for whom back pain was the chief complaint were found to have vertebral fractures.
authors.affiliation: Department of Rheumatology, Hospital Clinic i Provincial, University of Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Peris
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Guañabens
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Monegal
authors.forename: X
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Suris
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Alvarez
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Martinez de Osaba
authors.forename: M V
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: Hernandez
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Muñoz-Gomez
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000009:adverse effects; D001416:Back Pain / Q000209:etiology*; D002118:Calcium / Q000652:urine; D005938:Glucocorticoids / Q000009:adverse effects*; D006801:Humans; D007006:Hypogonadism / Q000150:complications* / Q000209:etiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010024:Osteoporosis / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications / Q000209:etiology* / Q000652:urine; D016103:Spinal Fractures / Q000209:etiology
chemical_list: D005938:Glucocorticoids; D002118:Calcium