THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN OSTEOARTHRITIS AND OSTEOPOROTIC FRACTURE - THE CHINGFORD STUDY

Studies of the association between the presence of osteoarthritis (OA) and the risk of osteoporotic fractures have produced conflicting resu lts. To address this question further, we have examined the associatio n between self-reported, validated fractures and radiological OA at mu ltiple sites in a large population of normal Caucasian women aged 45-6 5 yr. Despite having increased bone mineral density (BMD) of 5.3%, sub jects with hip OA had a significantly increased risk of fracture [odds ratio (OR) 2.38, 95% CI 1.06-5.35] compared to controls. Subjects wit h lumbar spine OA, however, had a significantly reduced risk of fractu re (OR 0.45, 95% CI 0.23-0.80) compared to controls. This association was not explained by differences in BMD, weight, sex hormones or physi cal activity. No clear association was seen with fracture for hand or knee OA. These data suggest that the increased risk of fracture in sub jects with OA of the hip is most likely to be due to mechanical and lo comotor factors, such as the risk of falling.