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Multiparity and bone mass
H Bererhi1, N Kolhoff, A Constable
1Department of Clinical and Biomedical Physics, Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat, Oman.
Objective:
To investigate the influence of multiparity on bone mass of the axial skeleton in a population of women of high parity.
Design:
Open study of Omani women.
Setting:
Medical physics department and clinical physiology department of a third degree referral (university) hospital.
Participants:
A consecutive series of 159 normal women referred with low back pain over a period of six months.
Results:
The bone mineral density was measured with dual-photon absorptiometry and the mean was found to be 0.984 (+/-0.166) (+/- SD) g cm-2. The age ranged from 20 to 70 years with a mean age of 43.4 (+/- 12.5) years. The number of children per woman ranged from 0 to 14 with a mean of 5.1 (+/- 3.5). There was no statistically significant influence of the number of children per woman on bone mineral density but there was a strong correlation with age and body size variables.
Conclusion:
Multiparity does not influence lumbar spine bone mineral density in normal women.