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Longitudinal changes in bone mineral density during perimenopausal transition: the Vietnam Osteoporosis Study

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Abstract

Summary

Based on the prospective cohort of the Vietnam Osteoporosis Study, we show that bone loss occurred before menopause, and that the loss accelerated in the first 5 years post-menopause.

Purpose

To define the change in bone mineral density (BMD) among women during the menopausal transition.

Methods

The study involved 1062 women aged 40–59 who were participants of the population-based prospective Vietnam Osteoporosis Study. BMD at the femoral neck (FN), lumbar spine (LS), and whole body scan was measured by DXA. Each woman has had two BMD measurements separated by approximately 2 years, and the rate of BMD change was calculated for each woman. Multivariable linear regression models were used to quantify the association between body composition parameters and the rate of BMD change.

Results

At FN, there were 3 phases of BMD change: a slight decline before the age of 45–49 (average loss of 0.51%/year); a substantial decline between the ages of 49 and 54 (average loss of 1.39%/year); and then slowed down between the ages of 54 and 59 (average loss of 0.31%/year). The same trend was also observed at LS: a slight decline (− 0.56%/year) among women aged 45–49; then a significant decline between the ages of 50 and 54 (− 1.33%/year); but then slowed down at − 0.31%/year after the age of 55. Changes in BMD were not significantly associated with changes in lean mass or fat mass.

Conclusions

Although bone loss occurred before menopause, the loss accelerated in the early perimenopausal transition (45–50 years of age). This finding suggests that screening for osteoporosis in women should be considered at the age of 45.

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Acknowledgements

We sincerely thank MS Tran Thi Ngoc Trang and Fr Pham Ba Lam for coordinating the recruitment of participants. We also thank doctors and medical students of the Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medicine for the data collection and clinical measurements.

Funding

This research is partly funded by the Foundation for Science and Technology Development of Ton Duc Thang University (FOSTECT, http://fostect.tdt.edu.vn), grant number FOSTECT.2014.BR.09, and a grant from the Department of Science and Technology of Ho Chi Minh City. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

Author information

Author notes

  1. Lan T. Ho-Pham and Huy G. Nguyen contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Bone and Muscle Research Group, Ton Duc Thang University, No. 19 Nguyen Huu Tho Street, Tan Phong Ward, District 7, Ho Chi Minh City, 700000, Vietnam

    Lan T. Ho-Pham, Huy G. Nguyen & Duy K. Hoang

  2. Biomedicine Research Center, Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medicine, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

    Lan T. Ho-Pham & Son Q. Nguyen-Pham

  3. School of Biomedical Engineering, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, Australia

    Huy G. Nguyen, Thạch S. Tran & Tuan V. Nguyen

  4. Saigon Precision Medicine Research Center, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

    Huy G. Nguyen & Duy K. Hoang

  5. School of Population Health, UNSW Medicine, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, Australia

    Tuan V. Nguyen

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  1. Lan T. Ho-Pham
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  2. Huy G. Nguyen
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Lan T. Ho-Pham.

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Ethics approval and consent to participate

The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the People’s Hospital 115. The study was conducted according to the ethical principles of the Declaration of Helsinki, and all participants gave written informed consent.

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Ho-Pham, L.T., Nguyen, H.G., Nguyen-Pham, S.Q. et al. Longitudinal changes in bone mineral density during perimenopausal transition: the Vietnam Osteoporosis Study. Osteoporos Int 34, 1381–1387 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00198-023-06757-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00198-023-06757-z

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