Endocrine Abstracts

Background: The likelihood of developing a fragility fracture rises with age. Osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, and hypovitaminosis D are all extremely common diseases, with 50% of women and 20% of men experiencing a fragility fracture at some point in their lives.

Objectives: First, compare the occurrence of osteoporosis, fragility fractures, and risk factors such as low vitamin D levels, low bone mineral density, and the presence of other illnesses that predispose to their occurrence in two groups of postmenopausal women living in different populations centers (rural vs. urban); second, observe the impact of low socioeconomic status, or poverty.

Material and Methods: Study participants included 260 postmenopausal women, 115 (31.6%) of who resided in rural areas and 145 (68.2%) in urban areas. In addition to other biochemical measurements, 25-hydroxyvitamin D and parathyroid hormone were identified among the information on risk factors for osteoporosis. Along with lateral X-rays of the dorsal and lumbar spine, bone densitometry was done on the proximal femur and the lumbar spine. The statistical analysis was performed utilizing SPSS® (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) version 18.0 of the statistical program. The means were compared using the Student’s t test or the Wilcoxon test, and the percentages were compared using the Chi-squared test (in the case of non-normality).

Results: Compared to women who resided in urban areas, rural women were older, shorter, heavier, and had a higher body mass index. There was a higher frequency of poverty, as well as higher levels of obesity, arterial hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and densitometric osteoporosis, among women from rural areas. The rural women exhibited greater rates of vertebral fractures and hypovitaminosis D, as well as poorer values for bone mineral density in the lumbar spine. Poverty, obesity, vertebral fractures, BMD in the lumbar spine, and levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D were the factors that were independently linked to residing in rural areas.

Conclusions: According to this study, postmenopausal women who reside in rural areas are more likely to be poor, have lower vitamin D levels, have lower lumbar spine BMD, and have a greater incidence of osteoporosis and vertebral fractures. These women’s increased rates of obesity, arterial hypertension, and diabetes mellitus may all be contributing causes to their socioeconomic status as poor.