Thin Bones Predict Heart Disease in Women :: Namibia Internet Gateway cc ::

Thin Bones Predict Heart Disease in Women

Posted by admin on Friday, March 26, 2004 - 04:26 PM

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Thin bones, as determined by X-rays of the hand, predict heart disease in women, according to a new report. This raises the possibility that treatments to prevent bone thinning, or osteoporosis, may also reduce the risk of heart disease
Although thin bones have been linked to stroke in women, no studies have looked at the ability of bone thickness to predict heart disease, lead author Dr. Elizabeth J. Samelson, from Harvard Medical School in Boston, and colleagues state in the American Journal of Epidemiology. To investigate, the researchers analyzed data from 1,236 women and 823 men who participated in The Framingham Study. The subjects were free from heart disease at the beginning of the study (1967-1970) when hand X-rays were taken. The participants were followed through the end of 1997 to assess the rate of heart disease. The rate of heart disease ranged from 11.76 to 15.65 cases per 1000 persons per year for groups with the thickest to thinnest bones in the hand, respectively. In contrast, no association between heart disease risk and bone mass was seen in men. The presence of this relationship in women only may reflect gender differences in how bone is mineralized, how heart disease evolves, or both, the authors note. The results suggest that boosting bone density may also prevent heart disease, the researchers note. To draw definitive conclusions regarding the implications of these findings on the treatment or prevention of osteoporosis, further studies are needed that use current tests of bone thickness.

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