Long-term thyroxine treatment and bone mineral density

Studies of the effect of thyroxine replacement therapy on bone mineral density have given conflicting results; the reductions in bone mass reported by some have prompted recommendations that prescribed doses of thyroxine should be reduced. We have examined the effect of long-term thyroxine treatment in a large homogeneous group of patients; all had undergone thyroidectomy for differentiated thyroid cancer but had no history of other thyroid disorders. The 49 patients were matched with controls for age, sex, menopausal status, body mass index, smoking history, and calcium intake score; in all subjects bone mineral density at several femoral and vertebral sites was measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Despite long-term thyroxine therapy (mean duration 7.9 [range 1-19] years) at doses (mean 191 [SD 50] micrograms/day) that resulted in higher serum thyroxine and lower serum thyrotropin concentrations than in the controls, the patients showed no evidence of lower bone mineral density than the controls at any site. Nor was bone mineral density correlated with dose, duration of therapy, or cumulative intake, or with tests of thyroid function. There was a decrease in bone density with age in both groups. We suggest that thyroxine alone does not have a significant effect on bone mineral density and hence on risk of osteoporotic fractures.