title: Decreased bone mineral density in adults born with very low birth weight: a cohort study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Very-low-birth-weight (VLBW, <1,500 g) infants have compromised bone mass accrual during childhood, but it is unclear whether this results in subnormal peak bone mass and increased risk of impaired skeletal health in adulthood. We hypothesized that VLBW is associated with reduced bone mineral density (BMD) in adulthood.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The Helsinki Study of Very Low Birth Weight Adults is a multidisciplinary cohort study representative of all VLBW births within the larger Helsinki area from 1978 to 1985. This study evaluated skeletal health in 144 such participants (all born preterm, mean gestational age 29.3 wk, birth weight 1,127 g, birth weight Z score 1.3), and in 139 comparison participants born at term, matched for sex, age, and birth hospital. BMD was measured by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry at age 18.5 to 27.1 y. Adults born with VLBW had, in comparison to participants born at term, a 0.51-unit (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.28-0.75) lower lumbar spine Z score and a 0.56-unit (95% CI 0.34-0.78) lower femoral neck Z score for areal BMD. These differences remained statistically significant after adjustment for the VLBW adults' shorter height and lower self-reported exercise intensity.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Young adults born with VLBW, when studied close to the age of peak bone mass, have significantly lower BMD than do their term-born peers. This suggests that compromised childhood bone mass accrual in preterm VLBW children translates into increased risk for osteoporosis in adulthood, warranting vigilance in osteoporosis prevention.
authors.affiliation: Hospital for Children and Adolescents, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland. petteri.hovi@helsinki.fi
authors.forename: Petteri
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Hovi
authors.forename: Sture
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Andersson
authors.forename: Anna-Liisa
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Järvenpää
authors.forename: Johan G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Eriksson
authors.forename: Sonja
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Strang-Karlsson
authors.forename: Eero
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kajantie
authors.forename: Outi
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Mäkitie
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001724:Birth Weight; D015519:Bone Density; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D019102:Infant, Very Low Birth Weight; D008297:Male; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D055815:Young Adult
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