Arthritis & Rheumatism, Volume 63,
November 2011 Abstract Supplement

Abstracts of the American College of
Rheumatology/Association of Rheumatology Health Professionals
Annual Scientific Meeting
Chicago, Illinois November 4-9, 2011.


Alterations of Bone Geometry, Volumetric Density and Microarchitecture in Women with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus on Chronic Corticosteroids: A Case-Control Study Using High Resolution-Peripheral Quantitative Computed Tomography.

Tang,  Xiao Lin, Zhu,  Tracy Y., Tam,  Lai Shan, Li,  Edmund K.

Background/Purpose:

To assess the alterations of bone geometry, volumetric bone mineral density (vBMD) and microarchitecture and areal BMD (aBMD) in women with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) on chronic corticosteroid.

Methods:

One hundred and twenty-one Chinese women with SLE taking chronic corticosteroid with mean (SD) age of 44.78 (8.47) and 121 age- and sex-matched healthy controls with mean (SD) age of 45.19 (8.31) were recruited. Bone geometry, vBMD and microarchitecture were measured by high resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HR-pQCT) at the non-dominant distal radius. aBMD was measured by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry at femoral neck, total hip, lumbar spine and non-dominant distal radius

Results:

At all 3 sites, aBMD was not significantly different between patients with SLE and controls. Prevalence of osteoporosis was significantly higher in patients with SLE than controls (8.3% vs. 2.5%, p=0.046). Using HR-pQCT, average bone density (p=0.02) and cortical bone density (p=0.002) were lower in patients than controls. Patients with SLE developed more deterioration in cortical area (p=0.014) and cortical thickness (p=0.002). After adjusting for body mass index and menopausal status, cortical area and cortical thickness remained significantly lower in patients than controls. There was a trend toward deterioration in trabecular bone quality, including trabecular bone density, trabecular bone volume fraction and trabecular number in patients with SLE, although not statistically significant.

aBMD and geometry, volumetric density, microarchitecture measured by DXA and HR-pQCT in SLE women and age-matched controls

 Patients (n=121)Controls (n=121)p
aBMD (g/cm2)   
Femoral neck0.72±0.150.74±0.110.197
Total hip0.85±0.120.88±0.110.053
L1-L4 spine1.02±0.930.99±0.150.744
Distal radius0.56±0.050.56±0.070.457
Geometry   
Total bone area (cm2)209.18±32.42203.94±34.860.227
Cortical area (cm2)54.43±9.6357.28±8.260.014
Trabecular area (cm2)151.80±31.72144.49±33.640.083
Volumetric BMD   
D100 (mg HA/cm3)365.70±73.42386.63±65.140.020
Dcomp (mg HA/ cm3)940.19±51.91958.30±39.030.002
Dtrab (mg HA/cm3)140.48±43.11142.17±38.150.747
Dmeta (mg HA/cm3)198.45±40.89204.23±36.110.245
Dinn (mg HA/cm3)100.16±45.9198.90±40.460.821
Microarchitecture   
Ct.Th (mm)0.91±0.170.97±0.150.002
Ct.Pm (mm)60.30±4.9559.34±4.990.135
BV/TV0.12±0.040.12±0.030.748
Tb.N (1/mm)1.54±0.281.55±0.260.759
Tb.Th (mm)0.08±0.020.08±0.010.615
Tb.Sp (mm)0.60±0.150.59±0.150.669
Tb.1/N.SD (mm)0.26±0.100.26±0.100.944

Conclusion:

Patients with SLE on chronic corticosteroid developed lower vBMD and deterioration of bone microarchitectural that can be assessed noninvasively by HR-pQCT. HR-pQCT appears sensitive to detect bone loss, especially cortical bone loss, in patients with SLE.

To cite this abstract, please use the following information:
Tang, Xiao Lin, Zhu, Tracy Y., Tam, Lai Shan, Li, Edmund K.; Alterations of Bone Geometry, Volumetric Density and Microarchitecture in Women with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus on Chronic Corticosteroids: A Case-Control Study Using High Resolution-Peripheral Quantitative Computed Tomography. [abstract]. Arthritis Rheum 2011;63 Suppl 10 :973
DOI:

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