title: Protective effect of female gender against bone loss in the forearm following clean-cut tendon injuries, repair, and passive mobilization.
abstract: The aim of this study was to investigate whether there is any significant difference in bone loss between female and male patients as a result of early passive mobilization after surgery for acute tendon-artery-nerve clean-cut injuries at the wrist level. A total of 51 patients who underwent such operations were enrolled in this study. Group I consisted of 40 male patients (mean age 30.2 +/- 9.1 years, age range 15-44 years) and group II consisted of 11 female patients (mean age 24.1 +/- 9.9 years, age range 14-43 years); postmenopausal women were not included in this group. Twenty-one patients in group I and six patients in group II were operated on for clean-cut tendon injury combined with nerve injury, artery injuries, or both. Bone mineral density (BMD) measurements of injuired forearms were obtained at 1 week, 6 weeks, 3 months, and 12 months after operation. The BMD of the radius and ulna did not change significantly throughout the follow-up period in group II (P > 0.05). In group I, BMD values were reduced significantly in the distal regions of the ulna and in the ultradistal region of the radius at the follow-up measurements when compared to the values at week 1 and the reduction was higher in month 3 than at other times. On the other hand, after 12 months, the BMD values of the ultra-distal region of the ulna and radius were higher than those after 3 months. In conclusion, our results showed that there is considerable bone loss of the radius and ulna in patients operated on for acute clean-cut tendon injuries on the volar side of the wrist at postoperative month 3 in male patients. These bone losses were recovered after 12 months. Additionally, female patients are less likely to experience immobilization-induced bone loss than male patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, Inonu University, Medical Faculty, 44315, Malatya, Turkey.
authors.forename: Kadir
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ertem
authors.forename: Ersoy
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kekilli
authors.forename: Yunus
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Karakoc
authors.forename: Saim
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yologlu
authors.forename: Fethi
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ceylan
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D015519:Bone Density / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D005543:Forearm Injuries / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015915:Motion Therapy, Continuous Passive; D010024:Osteoporosis / Q000503:physiopathology*; D012737:Sex Factors; D013708:Tendon Injuries / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000601:surgery