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Bone quality changes in fracture-prone children predict risk of fracture
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Researchers from Finland found changes in bone quality in fracture-prone pediatric patients predicted the risk of osteoporotic fracture, indicating a need for bone histomorphometry in certain patient groups.
“Especially in clinically challenging scenarios where different treatment options are being considered, bone histomorphometry provides valuable information. An accurate diagnosis and choice of medication are especially important when treating pediatric patients,” Inari S. Tamminen, MD, from the University of Eastern Finland, stated in a press release.
Tamminen and colleagues obtained 24 iliac crest bone biopsies from fracture-prone children who the researchers thought may have primary osteoporosis due to factors such as low bone mineral density and prior fracture history. The biopsies were analyzed using bone histomorphometry and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopic imaging, while vertebral morphology was analyzed using radiography, according to the abstract.
When the researchers compared children with and without vertebral fractures, they found “lower carbonate-to-phosphate ratios and higher collagen maturity than children without vertebral fractures,” they wrote. Further, children who had low cancellous bone volume had lower ratios of carbonate-to-amide I than children with normal bone volume, according to the abstract.
Reference:
Tamminen IS. J Bone Miner Res. 2013;doi:10.1016/j.arth.2013.02.026.
Disclosure: The authors have no relevant financial disclosures.