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Effect of Whole-Body Vibration on Calcaneal Quantitative Ultrasound Measurements in Postmenopausal Women: A Randomized Controlled Trial

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Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of whole-body vibration (WBV) on calcaneal quantitative ultrasound (QUS) measurements; which has rarely been examined. We conducted a single-centre, 12-month, randomized controlled trial. 202 postmenopausal women with BMD T score between −1.0 and −2.5, not receiving bone medications, were asked to stand on a 0.3 g WBV platform oscillating at either 90- or 30-Hz for 20 consecutive minutes daily, or to serve as controls. Calcium and vitamin D was provided to all participants. Calcaneal broadband attenuation (BUA), speed of sound, and QUS index were obtained as pre-specified secondary endpoints at baseline and 12 months by using a Hologic Sahara Clinical Bone Sonometer. 12-months of WBV did not improve QUS parameters in any of our analyses. While most of our analyses showed no statistical differences between the WBV groups and the control group, mean calcaneal BUA decreased in the 90-Hz (−0.4 [95 % CI −1.9 to 1.2] dB MHz−1) and 30-Hz (−0.7 [95 % CI −2.3 to 0.8] dB MHz−1) WBV groups and increased in the control group (1.3 [95 % CI 0.0–2.6] dB MHz−1). Decreases in BUA in the 90-, 30-Hz or combined WBV groups were statistically different from the control group in a few of the analyses including all randomized participants, as well as in analyses excluding participants who had missing QUS measurement and those who initiated hormone therapy or were <80 % adherent. Although there are consistent trends, not all analyses reached statistical significance. 0.3 g WBV at 90 or 30 Hz prescribed for 20 min daily for 12 months did not improve any QUS parameters, but instead resulted in a statistically significant, yet small, decrease in calcaneal BUA in postmenopausal women in several analyses. These unexpected findings require further investigation.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank the women who volunteered their time and participated in this trial. We also thank OsTek Orthopaedics Inc. for their assistance in obtaining the platforms. In addition, we thank Alice Demaras, Diana Yau, Claudia Chan, Gail Jefferson, and Farrah Ahmed and our research volunteers and work-study students who helped with various aspects of the study.

Conflicts of Interest

Please note that Lubomira Slatkovska, Joseph Beyene, Shabbir M. H. Alibhai, Queenie Wong, Qazi Z. Sohail, and Angela M. Cheung declare that they have no conflicts of interest. All authors made substantial contributions to the intellectual content of the paper. A peer-reviewed grant from the Physicians’ Services Incorporated Foundation funded this trial. Juvent Inc. supplied the WBV platforms and Jamieson Laboratories provided calcium and vitamin D supplements. None of these sources were involved in the study design, conduct, analysis, interpretation of the data, preparation of this manuscript, or decision to submit the manuscript for publication.

Human and Animal Rights and Informed Consent

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Osteoporosis Program, University Health Network/Mount Sinai Hospital, 200 Elizabeth Street, 7 Eaton North, Room 221, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Lubomira Slatkovska, Shabbir M. H. Alibhai, Queenie Wong & Angela M. Cheung

  2. Women’s Health Program, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Lubomira Slatkovska, Queenie Wong, Qazi Z. Sohail & Angela M. Cheung

  3. Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Shabbir M. H. Alibhai, Qazi Z. Sohail & Angela M. Cheung

  4. Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Shabbir M. H. Alibhai & Angela M. Cheung

  5. Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Lubomira Slatkovska, Shabbir M. H. Alibhai & Angela M. Cheung

  6. Centre of Excellence in Skeletal Health Assessment, Joint Department of Medical Imaging, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Queenie Wong & Angela M. Cheung

  7. Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Joseph Beyene & Angela M. Cheung

  8. Department of Clinical Epidemiology & Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada

    Joseph Beyene

Authors
  1. Lubomira Slatkovska
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  2. Joseph Beyene
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  3. Shabbir M. H. Alibhai
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  4. Queenie Wong
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  5. Qazi Z. Sohail
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  6. Angela M. Cheung
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Angela M. Cheung.

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Slatkovska, L., Beyene, J., Alibhai, S.M.H. et al. Effect of Whole-Body Vibration on Calcaneal Quantitative Ultrasound Measurements in Postmenopausal Women: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Calcif Tissue Int 95, 547–556 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00223-014-9920-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00223-014-9920-1

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