title: Impact of osteoporosis and vertebral fractures on quality-of-life. a population-based study in Valencia, Spain (The FRAVO Study).
abstract: BACKGROUND
  To describe the health related quality of life in a population sample of postmenopausal women over the age of 50 and resident in the city of Valencia (Spain), according to the presence/absence of osteoporosis and the severity of prevalent morphometric vertebral fractures.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional age-stratified population-based sample of 804 postmenopausal women of 50 years of age and older were assessed with the SF-12 questionnaire. Information about demographic features, lifestyle, clinical features, educational level, anti-osteoporotic and other treatments, comorbidities and risk factors for osteoporosis were collected using an interviewer-administered questionnaire and densitometric evaluation of spine and hip and spine x-rays were carried out.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In the non-adjusted analysis, mild and moderate-severe vertebral fractures were associated with decreased scores in the SF-12 Physical Component Summary (PCS) but not in the Mental Component Summary (MCS), while densitometric osteoporosis with no accompanying fracture was not associated with a worse health related quality of life. In multivariate analysis worse PCS scores were associated to the age groups over 70 (-2.43 for 70-74 group and -2.97 for 75 and older), chronic conditions (-4.66, -6.79 and -11.8 according to the presence of 1, 2 or at least 3 conditions), obesity (-5.35), peripheral fracture antecedents (-3.28), hypoestrogenism antecedents (-2.61) and the presence of vertebral fracture (-2.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  After adjusting for confounding factors, the physical components of health related quality of life were significantly lower in women with prevalent osteoporotic vertebral fractures than in women--osteoporotic or not--without vertebral fractures.
authors.affiliation: Centro Superior de Investigación en Salud Pública, Valencia, Spain. sanfelix_jos@gva.es
authors.forename: José
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sanfélix-Genovés
authors.forename: Isabel
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Hurtado
authors.forename: Gabriel
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sanfélix-Gimeno
authors.forename: Begoña
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Reig-Molla
authors.forename: Salvador
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Peiró
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D015663:Osteoporosis, Postmenopausal / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D058866:Osteoporotic Fractures / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D015995:Prevalence; D011788:Quality of Life; D011859:Radiography; D018434:Sickness Impact Profile; D013030:Spain; D016103:Spinal Fractures