Contribution of predicted skeletal mass and fat mass by anthropometric methods in determining bone mineral density in elderly Indian women

Abstract

Background: Osteoporosis and obesity are two public health problems that are growing in prevalence worldwide, including in India. Aims & Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between fat mass, skeletal mass, and bone mineral density (BMD) in elderly Indian women. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in 34 healthy Indian women aged 40–75 years. BMD were measured by ultrasound bone densitometry. Fat mass and skeletal mass were measured by anthropometric methods. To evaluate the associations between fat mass and skeletal mass and BMD, multivariable linear regression models were used to estimate the regression coefficients for fat mass and skeletal mass. Results: In elderly women, after controlling for age and height, both fat mass and skeletal mass were positively correlated with BMD when they were analyzed independently of each other. When included in the same equation, both fat mass and skeletal mass continued to show a positive effect, but skeletal mass had a significantly greater impact on BMD than fat mass. Conclusion: This study concludes that anthropometric variables, such as weight, height, Skeletal mass, Fat mass seem to be significant predictors of bone mineral density in elderly women. Skeletal mass had a significant beneficial effect on BMD in elderly women and can be considered as one of the determinants of bone mass.