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Comparing Two Diseases Affecting Bones: Osteoporosis and Spine Osteoarthritis

Osteoporosis is the loss of bone mineral density (BMD) that tends to occur with aging. It is especially common in women who are past menopause. Osteoarthritis (OA) of the spine is another condition that affects the bones. These two conditions are known to be different diseases with different causes.

Since osteoporosis and spine OA both happen with aging, it seems like they would both be seen in older patients. But that is not the case. In fact, this study agrees with past research showing that patients with spine OA actually have greater BMD in the spine.

These researchers wanted to get an accurate measure of the relationship between osteoporosis and spine OA. They used sophisticated X-rays to measure BMD in the spine and the hip of postmenopausal women. They found that patients with spine OA did indeed show higher BMD in the spine. This "inverse relationship" suggests that the presence of spine OA means there's less possibility of also having low BMD (osteoporosis). Notably, the patients with spine OA also tended to have higher BMD in their hipbones.

No one knows yet what to make of the relationship between osteoporosis and spine OA. Perhaps the presence of spine OA increases hormones that help to counteract osteoporosis.

Research like this is laying the foundation for doctors to understand what happens in the bones as they age. The authors recommend further study on genetic factors related to these diseases.

References: Naohisa Miyakoshi, MD, et al. Inverse Relation Between Osteoporosis and Spondylosis in Postmenopausal Women as Evaluated by Bone Mineral Density and Semiquantitative Scoring of Spinal Degeneration. In Spine. March 1, 2003. Vol. 28. No. 5. Pp. 492-495.

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