Bone mineral density status and frequency of osteoporosis and clinical fractures in 155 patients with psoriatic arthritis followed in a university hospital.
OBJECTIVE
To assess the bone mineral density (BMD) and the frequency of osteoporosis and clinical fractures in a large group of Spanish patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA).


METHODS
BMD was determined by DXA in all the patients who were willing to participate and had peripheral PsA regularly evaluated in a tertiary university hospital. All patients underwent a physical examination and general laboratory analysis. We gathered demographic and clinical variables related with BMD and risk of fractures. We also recorded the history of clinical low impact fractures. The population of reference to calculate T-score and Z-score came from a Spanish database.


RESULTS
One hundred and fifty-five patients were included (64 postmenopausal women, 26 premenopausal women and 65 men). The clinical forms of PsA were: 46% oligoarticular and 54% polyarticular. Mean disease duration was 13.7±9.4 years and mean ESR was 21.8±13.9mm/h; 66% of patients had received glucocorticoid treatment. We found no differences in BMD status between the patients and the Spanish general population, neither in the whole series nor in each defined subgroup. Frequency of osteoporosis was 16%; it was higher in postmenopausal women (28%) than in men (9%) or premenopausal women (4%). Frequency of clinical fractures was 13%; it accounted specially in postmenopausal women.


CONCLUSIONS
The magnitude of the problem of osteoporosis in PsA seems to be mild.
Servicio de Reumatología, Hospital General de Granollers, Granollers, Barcelona, Spain.
Noemi
N
Busquets
Servicio de Reumatología, IDIBELL-Hospital Universitari de Bellvitge, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain.
Carmen Gómez
CG
Vaquero
Servicio de Reumatología, IDIBELL-Hospital Universitari de Bellvitge, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain.
Jesús Rodríguez
JR
Moreno
Servicio de Reumatología, Hospital Moisés Broggi, Sant Joan Despí, Barcelona, Spain.
Daniel Roig
DR
Vilaseca
Servicio de Reumatología, IDIBELL-Hospital Universitari de Bellvitge, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain.
Javier
J
Narváez
Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Camilo José Cela, Madrid, Spain; Instituto de Salud Musculoesquelética, Madrid, Spain.
Loreto
L
Carmona
Servicio de Reumatología, IDIBELL-Hospital Universitari de Bellvitge, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain. Electronic address: jm.nolla@bellvitgehospital.cat.
Joan M
JM
Nolla
D015502:Absorptiometry, Photon; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015535:Arthritis, Psoriatic / Q000150:complications*; D015519:Bone Density; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006785:Hospitals, University; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010024:Osteoporosis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D058866:Osteoporotic Fractures / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D013030:Spain
Artritis psoriásica; Bone densitometry; Bone mineral density; Densidad mineral ósea; Densitometría ósea; Fracturas; Fractures; Osteoporosis; Psoriatic arhritis