Volumetric bone mineral density and bone size in sleep-deprived individuals

Chronic sleep deprivation, which is associated with several age-related pathologies and altered endocrine function, may adversely affect bone. Our a priori hypothesis was that bone mineral density was lower in sleep-deprived (<6.5 h/night) vs. sleep-adequate (>6.5-10 h/night) individuals.

Cross-sectional analysis of sleep and bone data on 1,146 individuals (652 women) was performed. Measurements were obtained at the distal radius by pQCT, and the spine and hip by DXA. Bone differences between sleep-deprived and sleep-adequate groups were compared after stratifying by sex and controlling for covariates.

Overall, 19% of the population was sleep deprived. Sleep-deprived women had lower cortical volumetric BMD (1,208+/-4 vs. 1,219+/-2 mg/cm(3), P=0.03) than sleep-adequate women. Sleep-deprived men had lower pSSI, an estimate of torsional bending strength, than sleep-adequate men (358+/-10 vs. 382+/-5 mm(3), P=0.04), due to a slightly smaller periosteal circumference (43.9+/-0.4 vs. 44.8+/-0.2 mm, P=0.07) and cortical area (103+/-2 vs. 106+/-1+/-mm(2), P=0.06).

Sleep deprivation is associated with some, but not all, bone outcomes. These findings may have important public health significance given the increasing prevalence of sleep deprivation.