[Prevalence of bone loss in adult celiac disease and associated factors: a control case study]

Bone loss in celiac disease (CD) is important and is associated to increased risk of fractures. The determining factors of this Bone loss and the osteoporosis fracture during this disease remain still unknown. The bone remodeling parameters seem to play it an important role.

Through a transverse study including 30 patients with adult CD and 30 witnesses, we estimated bone mineral density (BMD) profile of these patients and determined associated factors to the bone loss.

Patients and witnesses benefited from an BMD measure, serum calcium and phosphore, alkaline phosphatasis, parathormone and hydroxyvitamin D dosage, bone remodeling parameters containing the osteocalcin, Propeptide N-terminal of the type I procollagen, BTélopeptide C-terminal ( B-CTX) of the type I procollagen I (bloody and urine CrossLaps). The patients benefited from a malabsorption bilan, a radiological examination of spine and an evaluation of the adhesion to the regime without gluten with a histological control.

Our population consists of 3 men (10 %) and 27 women (90 %) with an average age of 30.4 years (19-50 years). The average delay of the diagnosis of the MC is of 46.7 months. The alkaline phosphatases, the P1NP and the bloody crossLaps were more raised at the patient's with regard to the witnesses with respectively p=0.038, p=0.041 and p=0.021. The parathormone was also more raised at the patients but without significant difference 67.8 vs 53.8 ng / l. The DMO is low at 21 patients (70 %) versus 2 witnesses only (6.6 %), with an osteoporosis in 3 patients (10 %) and an osteopenia in 18 patients (60 %). Factors associated to the BMD decline are low body mass index, nulliparity, diagnostic delay > to 2 years, the malabsorption syndrome, exaggerated intraepithelial lymphocytosis at the time of the histological control, an increase of bone remodeling parameters notably the alkaline phosphatasis, osteocalcin and bloody CrossLaps. While the BMD is more raised at the patient's having followed gluten regimens during more than 5 years. The age, the sex, the symptomatic character or not of the disease, the parathormone, hydroyviamin D and fractures are not correlated to the BMD profile patients.

The bone loss is more frequent during the adult CD than in the general population. His research has to become integrated into the coverage of this disease notably in the presence of risk factors. The absence of correlation between BMD loss and fractures underlines the importance of others factors in determining of bone fragility during this affection.