title: Is alanine aminotransferase associated with osteopenia in middle-aged and elderly Chinese?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the association between alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels and risk of osteopenia in middle-aged and elderly Chinese with ALT within the normal range.
  
  
  METHODS
  This was a cross-sectional study. A total of 4,890 men and women (pre- and postmenopausal) aged 40 years or older were randomly recruited from Fujian, China. Each participant was required to complete a questionnaire and then undergo anthropometric, biochemical, and bone mineral density measurements.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The odds ratio of osteopenia decreased significantly with increasing ALT level at baseline. The three groups (men, pre- and postmenopausal women) were divided by ALT quartiles. In multiple logistic regression models using the first quartile as the reference, after adjusting for corresponding confounding factors, the odds ratios of osteopenia across the other ALT quartiles were 0.576 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.390 to 0.851), 0.654 (95% CI, 0.460 to 0.930), and 0.629 (95% CI, 0.427 to 0.926) for premenopausal women, and 0.949 (95% CI, 0.699 to 1.289), 0.733 (95% CI, 0.540 to 0.995), and 0.692 (95% CI, 0.508 to 0.943) for postmenopausal women (not significant for quartile 2). However, no significantly different results were found in men. Multiple linear regression models showed that serum ALT concentrations were positively associated with the homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study of middle-aged and elderly Chinese men and women demonstrates that the prevalence of osteopenia is inversely associated with ALT level when ALT is within the normal range.
authors: Department of Endocrinology, Fujian Provincial Hospital Key Laboratory of Endocrinology, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou China.
authors: Gang
authors: G
authors: Chen
authors: Department of Endocrinology, Fujian Provincial Hospital Key Laboratory of Endocrinology, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou China.
authors: Ling
authors: L
authors: Chen
authors: Department of Endocrinology, Ningde Municipal Hospital, Fujian Medical University, Ningde, China.
authors: Baoying
authors: B
authors: Huang
authors: Department of Osteology, Wuyishan Municipal Hospital, Fujian Provincial Hospital, Wuyishan, China.
authors: Changsheng
authors: C
authors: Qiu
authors: Department of Endocrinology, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
authors: Jieli
authors: J
authors: Lu
authors: Department of Endocrinology, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
authors: Yufang
authors: Y
authors: Bi
authors: Department of Endocrinology, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
authors: Guang
authors: G
authors: Ning
authors: Department of Endocrinology, Fujian Provincial Hospital Key Laboratory of Endocrinology, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou China.
authors: Jixing
authors: J
authors: Liang
authors: Department of Endocrinology, Fujian Provincial Hospital Key Laboratory of Endocrinology, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou China.
authors: Junping
authors: J
authors: Wen
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood*; D001851:Bone Diseases, Metabolic / Q000201:enzymology / Q000209:etiology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged
chemical_list: D000410:Alanine Transaminase