BONE-MINERAL DENSITY IN TURNERS-SYNDROME - A LONGITUDINAL-STUDY

OBJECTIVE Osteoporosis is a recognized problem in adult women with Tur ner's syndrome, the aetiology of which is unclear. The aim of this stu dy was to examine bone mineralization longitudinally in a group of gir ls with Turner's syndrome and to study the effect of different treatme nts on bone mineral density. DESIGN A prospective observational study. PATIENTS Eighteen girls with Turner's syndrome aged 4-17 years attend ing a paediatric endocrine clinic. MEASUREMENTS Bone mineral density o f the lumbar spine was assessed using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry at several time points over a 2.5-year period. RESULTS Only one girl had evidence of a significant reduction in bone density when compariso ns were made with control data related to body weight and pubertal sta tus. No advantage was found for any form of treatment in optimizing bo ne mineralization. CONCLUSIONS As there is little evidence of reduced bone mineral density in girls with Turner's syndrome there is no justi fication for an early introduction of oestrogen replacement during the prepubertal years.