[Tomodensitometry measurements of proximal tibia and acceleration in marathon athletes]

We evaluated bone adaptation of the tibia to mechanical stresses in male marathon runners and in sedentary controls in function of the ground impact measured by accelerometry and of the bone mineral density assessed by peripheral quantitative computed tomography (QCT). Sixty-three subjects (51 runners and 12 controls) were enrolled. All had measurements of bone mineral density of the proximal tibia and of acceleration at the same site during a jogging at 9 km/hour. The results show a significant higher cortical BMD in runners with the higher value of late accelerations (at 50 ms after the contact with the ground). The late acceleration might be related to muscle contraction.