RELATION BETWEEN BONE-MINERAL CONTENT AND CLINICAL, HORMONAL AND BIOCHEMICAL PARAMETERS IN POSTMENOPAUSAL WOMEN

We studied factors related to bone mass after a natural or surgical me nopause in 73 healthy women attending the menopause clinic of a univer sity hospital. In the natural menopause group we found inverse correla tions between bone mineral density (BMD) vs, menopausal duration; BMD vs, body mass index (BMI) and BMI vs. inorganic phosphate (Pi), border line correlations between weight vs. thyroxin (T4) and weight vs, lute inising hormone (LH) and a positive correlation between androstenedion e (D4A) vs. urinary calcium (Uca). In the surgical menopause group we found some negative correlations (BMD vs. menopausal duration, BMI vs. Pi; BMI vs. dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate (DS), weight vs. DS and c ortisol vs. Uca) and some positive correlations (BMD vs. free testoste rone (fT), BMD vs, calcium (Ca), and BMD vs. Uca). We concluded that t he serum hormone levels we measured were not useful markers of current bone mineral status.