[Hormonal regulation of bone metabolism]

During the past two decades our ideas about the regulation of bone formation and resorption has been expanded. At the cellular level we have learnt more about the hormonal control of the osteoblastic bone formation, the osteoclastic bone resorption and the role of the nonosseous cells in the bone metabolism. At the tissue level we have understood the coupling between osteoblastic bone formation and osteoclastic bone resorption and consequently the relation between bone turnover and skeletal growth, involution and pathologic bone changes. Though many of the findings of the recent bone researches have helped us to understand the pathogenesis of the metabolic and infectious bone diseases we do not yet have a reliable means for stimulating bone formation of structurally and functionally effective new bone in human beings. In this review we tried to summarize the research data and clinical observations showing the direct and indirect effect of calcium regulating hormones (PTH, 1,25 dihydroxyvitamin D and calcitonin) on bone metabolism.