Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 5, 2026
Scanning Skeletal Remains for Bone Mineral Density in Forensic Contexts
Published on: January 29, 2018
Associations between bone mineral density and subclinical atherosclerosis: a cross-sectional study of a Chinese
Dong-Ke Liang1, Xiao-Juan Bai, Bing Wu
1Departments of Gerontology and Geriatrics (D.-K.L., B.W., X.-N.W.) and Cardiac Function (J.Y.), the First Affiliated Hospital, China Medical University, Shenyang 110001, China; Departments of Gerontology and Geriatrics (X.-J.B., L.-L.H.), Sheng Jing Hospital, China Medical University, Shenyang 110004, China; and Department of Kidney (X.-M.C.), General Hospital of Chinese People's Liberation Army, Beijing 100853, China.
Context:
The significance of associations between bone mineral density (BMD) and atherosclerosis in the Asian population is less clear.
Objective:
The aim of this study was to explore the population-level associations between BMD and subclinical atherosclerosis.
Design And Setting:
This was a community-based cross-sectional study conducted in Shenyang, China.
Participants:
A total of 385 Chinese women and men aged 37-87 years were studied.
Main Outcome Measures:
The BMD was measured at the total hip and lumbar spine using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. The ankle-brachial index (ABI), pulse wave velocity (PWV), and carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) were measured to assess atherosclerosis. Multiple regression analysis was applied to study the associations. Multicolinearity was examined using the variance inflation factor, condition index, and variance proportions. Factor analysis and principal component regression were used to remove the problem of multicolinearity.
Results:
The differences of ABI, PWV, and CIMT among the normal BMD, osteopenia, and osteoporosis groups were not found. Total hip BMD was correlated with ABI in women after adjustment for age (r = 0.156). Sex-specific regression models included adjustment for age, body mass index, cigarette smoking, alcohol consumption, menopausal status (women), systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, triglycerides, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, fasting blood glucose, serum uric acid, estimated glomerular filtration rate, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, and fibrinogen. Total hip BMD was associated with ABI in women after adjustment for age (per SD decrease in ABI: -0.130 g/cm(2), P = .022), but the association was borderline significant after full adjustment (P = .045). Total hip BMD and lumbar spine BMD were not associated with ABI, PWV, and CIMT after full adjustment in participants without a fracture history. The risk of osteoporosis was not associated with ABI, PWV, and CIMT.
Conclusions:
Low BMD is not associated with subclinical atherosclerosis as assessed by ABI, PWV, and CIMT.
Related Concept Videos
01:25Imaging Studies for Cardiovascular System VI: Calcium -Scoring CT
01:20Study Designs in Epidemiology
Observational studies are those where the researcher does not intervene but rather observes natural variations. They include cross-sectional, cohort, and...
01:29Bone Disorders
Bone deposition is also affected by the levels of sex hormones like estrogen and testosterone that promote osteoblast activity and bone matrix synthesis. When the level of these hormones decreases due to aging, it causes a reduction in bone deposition. As a result, bone resorption by osteoclasts...
01:30Coronary Artery Disease I: Introduction
01:27Atherosclerosis II: Clinical Manifestations and Diagnostic Tests
01:30Atherosclerosis I: Introduction