PREVALENCE OF FRACTURES IN POSTMENOPAUSAL WOMEN WITH THYROID-DISEASE

We interviewed 300 white postmenopausal women (160 with thyroid diseas e, 140 without thyroid disease) to investigate whether having thyroid disease or taking thyroid hormone increased the prevalence of having a hip, vertebral, or forearm fracture. Thirty-seven (23%) women with th yroid disease and 45 (32%) women without thyroid disease had had a fra cture, and there were no significant differences between these groups in the number or type of fractures. Dose of thyroid hormone and durati on of therapy or disease did not affect fracture occurrence in women w ith thyroid disease. Women with a history of hyperthyroidism (9 of 32) or thyroid cancer (2 of 11) appeared to have their first fracture ear lier (p < 0.01) than women without thyroid disease. In summary, women taking thyroid hormone for a variety of thyroid disorders do not appea r to have an enhanced prevalence of a hip, vertebral, or forearm fract ures, but women with a history of hyperthyroidism may have a propensit y for their fractures to occur earlier in life.