SCREENING OF OSTEOPOROSIS IN MEN

Abstract

Underestimation of the disease osteoporosis in men is a serious problem, as osteoporotic fractures among men are frequent and they are accompanied by serious complications. Conducting DXA scans in men in Bulgaria is important to determine the state of their bone health.
 The aim of the study was to assess the bone mineral density (BMD) and T-score of the lumbar spine and of the hip through dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) in men and to compare their values ​​in different age groups.
 Object of the study. Height, weight, body mass index (BMI) were assessed in 359 men with a mean age of 56 years (yrs.) ± 14 yrs., BMD and T-score of the lumbar spine and femoral neck were also examined.
 Methodology. Men are divided into the following age decades: 20-29 yrs., 30-39 yrs., 40-49 yrs., 50-59 yrs., 60-69 yrs., 70-79 yrs. and ≥80 yrs. Statistical program SPSS version 19.0 was used to access the data. The ANOVA test analyzes was applied to investigate if there are any statistically significant differences in BMD and T-score of the lumbar spine and femoral neck between the different age decades.
 Results and conclusions. 264 men were evaluated for total BMD of the lumbar spine and 95 men had results for BMD of the femoral neck. The mean total BMD of the lumbar spine differed significantly between the individual age decades in men (p = 0.000). The mean BMD values ​​of the femoral neck did not differ significantly in the different age decades in men (p = 0.07). 34 of 264 men (12.9%) were diagnosed with lumbar spine osteoporosis and 13 out of 93 men (14%) were diagnosed with femoral neck osteoporosis. The data obtained show a widespread prevalence of osteoporosis among men with a predominance of low values ​​of BMD on the axial skeleton in the age range between 60 and 79 years.