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Distal radius bone microarchitecture: what are the differences between age 25 and old age?
Canchen Ma1, Feng Pan1, Yi Yang1
1Menzies Institute for Medical Research, University of Tasmania, 17 Liverpool Street, Hobart, Tasmania, 7000, Australia.
Archives of Osteoporosis
|February 21, 2020
Summary
Older adults experience bone loss, with enlarged transitional zones and increased cortical porosity in the radius. Bone mineral density differences between age groups were similar, suggesting structural changes, not just density loss.
Area of Science:
- Orthopedics
- Gerontology
- Biomedical Engineering
Background:
- Aging significantly impacts bone health, leading to bone loss.
- Understanding age-related changes in bone microarchitecture and density from peak bone mass to senescence is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantify differences in bone microarchitecture, areal bone mineral density (aBMD), and volumetric bone mineral density (vBMD) at the distal radius between older and young adults.
Main Methods:
- Comparison of 201 older adults (62-89 years) and 196 young adults (24-28 years).
- High-resolution peripheral computed tomography (HRpQCT) for bone microarchitecture.
- Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) for aBMD.
- Statistical analysis using unpaired t tests and chi-square tests.
Main Results:
- Older adults exhibited thinner cortices and enlarged transitional zones compared to young adults (p < 0.05).
- Cortical porosity was significantly higher in older adults (54% vs. 49%, p < 0.001).
- Differences in aBMD and vBMD between age groups were comparable in magnitude.
Conclusions:
- Aging leads to enlarged transitional zones and increased cortical porosity at the expense of the compact cortex in the distal radius.
- Similar standard deviations in aBMD and vBMD suggest that age-related bone area changes do not significantly artifactualize density measurements.
Keywords:
Bone microarchitectureBone mineral densityHigh-resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomographyPeak bone massMore Related Videos
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