title: Oral contraceptive use and bone density in adolescent and young adult women.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Most of the millions of oral contraceptive (OC) users are under 30 years of age and in the critical period for bone mass accrual.
  
  
  METHODS
  This cross-sectional study of 606 women aged 14-30 years examined both OC duration and estrogen dose and their association with bone mineral density (BMD) at the hip, spine, and whole body (dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of 389 OC users and 217 nonusers enrolled, 50% were adolescents (14-18 years). Of OC users, 38% used "low-dose" OCs [<30 mcg ethinyl estradiol (EE)]. In adolescents, mean BMD differed by neither OC duration nor EE dose. However, 19- to 30-year-old women's mean BMD was lower with longer OC use for spine and whole body (p=.004 and p=.02, respectively) and lowest for >12 months of low-dose OCs for the hip, spine and whole body (p=.02, .003 and .002, respectively).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Prolonged use of today's OCs, particularly <30 mcg EE, may adversely impact young adult women's bone density while using these agents.
authors.affiliation: Group Health Center for Health Studies, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle, WA 98101, USA. scholes.d@ghc.org
authors.forename: Delia
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Scholes
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ichikawa
authors.forename: Andrea Z
authors.initials: AZ
authors.lastname: LaCroix
authors.forename: Leslie
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Spangler
authors.forename: Jeannette M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Beasley
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Reed
authors.forename: Susan M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Ott
mesh_terms: D015502:Absorptiometry, Photon; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D015519:Bone Density / Q000187:drug effects*; D003276:Contraceptives, Oral / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D005260:Female; D006615:Hip; D006801:Humans; D012044:Regression Analysis; D013131:Spine / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D003276:Contraceptives, Oral