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Volumetric bone mineral density at the spine and hip in Chinese American and White women

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Abstract

Summary

This study evaluated racial differences in bone size and volumetric density at the spine and hip in pre- and postmenopausal Chinese American and White women. Compared with White women, Chinese American women have greater cortical volumetric bone density (vBMD) at the hip, congruent with the results at the peripheral skeleton.

Introduction

Chinese American women have lower rates of fracture than White women despite lower areal bone density. At the forearm and tibia, however, Chinese American women have higher cortical vBMD as well as greater trabecular and cortical thickness, but smaller bone area as measured by high-resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HR-pQCT) compared with White women. Since HR-pQCT data are obtained at peripheral sites, it is unclear whether these differences are relevant to the clinically important lumbar spine and hip. This study assesses racial differences in bone size and vBMD at the spine and hip in Chinese American and White women.

Methods

QCT of the spine and hip was measured to assess racial differences in bone size, structure, and vBMD in pre- (n = 83) and postmenopausal (n = 50) Chinese American and White women. Data were adjusted for weight, height, physical activity, total calcium intake, parathyroid hormone, and 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels.

Results

Among premenopausal women, lumbar spine trabecular vBMD was 5.8% greater in Chinese American versus White women (p = 0.01). At the hip, cortical vBMD was 3% greater at the femoral neck (p = 0.05) and 3.6% greater at the total hip (p = 0.01) in premenopausal Chinese American compared with White women. Among postmenopausal women, there was no difference in lumbar spine trabecular vBMD. Cortical vBMD was 4% greater at the total hip (p = 0.02) and tended to be greater at the femoral neck (p = 0.058) in Chinese American versus White women.

Conclusions

Consistent with earlier findings in the peripheral skeleton, cortical vBMD is greater at the hip in Chinese American versus White women.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by NIH grants K23 AR053507 and UL1 RR024156, a National Osteoporosis Foundation grant, and the Mary and David Hoar Fellowship Program of the New York Community Trust and the New York Academy of Medicine. We are grateful to Dr. Clyde Wu, whose direction and support were essential to the design and execution of this study.

Conflicts of interest

None.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, 630 West 168th Street, PH8 West–864, New York, NY, 10032, USA

    M. D. Walker, D. J. McMahon, J. Udesky & J. P. Bilezikian

  2. Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA

    I. Saeed & T. Lang

  3. Department of Medicine, New York Downtown Hospital, New York, NY, USA

    G. Liu

Authors
  1. M. D. Walker
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  2. I. Saeed
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  3. D. J. McMahon
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  4. J. Udesky
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  5. G. Liu
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  6. T. Lang
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  7. J. P. Bilezikian
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Correspondence to M. D. Walker.

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Walker, M.D., Saeed, I., McMahon, D.J. et al. Volumetric bone mineral density at the spine and hip in Chinese American and White women. Osteoporos Int 23, 2499–2506 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00198-011-1855-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00198-011-1855-z

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