title: [Is it possible to identify women with rapid vertebral bone loss during menopause? Result of a longitudinal study of 92 women at the onset of menopause].
abstract: Low bone mass is the main risk factors for osteoporosis. The role of the rate of bone loss following cessation of menses is more difficult to evaluate. We prospectively studied vertebral bone loss in 92 women six months to three years after cessation of menses in order to determine the clinical and biological characteristics of the subgroup of subjects with accelerated bone loss. Clinical characteristics, hormone assay results, and values of the main biochemical markers of bone turnover were recorded at the initial evaluation and correlations between these parameters and the rate of bone loss were investigated. Serial measurements of vertebral bone density were performed using dual photon absorptiometry. Mean duration of the observation period was 31 +/- 13 months. Mean rate of bone loss was -1.66% per year (range 1.6% to 7.7%). In women with accelerated vertebral bone loss i.e., a greater than 2.5% decrease in bone density per year (25th centile), there were trends towards lower values for body mass index and weight (non-significant) and a significantly higher urinary calcium/urinary creatinine ratio (p < 0.05) as compared with the rest of the study group. Rate of bone loss was weakly correlated (p < 0.05) with body mass index (r = 0.22) and with the urinary calcium/urinary creatinine ratio (r = 0.23) but demonstrated no correlations with osteocalcin levels or serum alkaline phosphatase activity. In conclusion, none of the clinical features or laboratory parameters studied proved capable of reliably predicting the rate of vertebral bone loss in individual women shortly after cessation of menses.
authors.affiliation: UF Maladies Osseuses et Métaboliques, Service d'Endocrinologie, CHU Purpan, Toulouse.
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Pouillès
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Trémollières
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ribot
mesh_terms: D015502:Absorptiometry, Photon; D015519:Bone Density; D002118:Calcium / Q000032:analysis; D003404:Creatinine / Q000032:analysis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008875:Middle Aged; D015663:Osteoporosis, Postmenopausal / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000652:urine; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011446:Prospective Studies; D017584:Reproductive History; D013122:Spinal Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology
chemical_list: D003404:Creatinine; D002118:Calcium
vernacular_title: Peut-on identifier les femmes à perte osseuse vertébrale rapide au moment de la ménopause? Résultats d'une étude longitudinale chez 92 femmes en début de ménopause.