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EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE UNTIL 1:00 P.M. (PDT) ON OCT. 1
GENETICS AND ENVIRONMENT PLAY SIGNIFICANT ROLES IN HIP FRACTURE RISK AT DIFFERENT
AGES
Seattle (Oct. 1, 2004)—Genetics plays the most important role in determining
the strength of the hip bone for women under age 45, while the hip strength
for women 45 and older is more influenced by life experiences, according to
research presented by lead investigator John Wark, M.D., Ph.D., at the 26th
Annual Meeting of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR).
Previous research on twins and family groups has shown that bone mineral density,
a measure that is useful in the prediction of people’s risk of bone fracture,
is significantly influenced by genetics.
Dr. Wark and his colleagues – based at the Department of Medicine at University
of Melbourne, Australia; The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore,
Maryland, USA; and the School of Health Sciences at Deakin University in Burwood,
Australia – hypothesized that variations in the biomechanical properties
of bone might have a genetic component as well. To test this hypothesis, they
performed hip structural analysis (HSA) on 508 pairs of identical and fraternal
female twins, aged 18 to 89, using bone mineral density (BMD). This analysis
provided estimates of bone strength and the thickness and diameter of bone at
the hip. The data were adjusted so that neither height nor weight influenced
the results.
The researchers found that there was a moderate to strong genetic influence
on almost all HSA-derived measures of bone strength. However, the extent of
this influence was strong only for those under 45. For the 45 years and older
group, the impact of genes on these measures of hip fracture risk appeared far
less significant. For the older group, environmental exposure – medications,
diseases, smoking, alcohol consumption, and diet – played at least as
great a role than inherited factors in determining hip bone strength.
Dr. Wark said the findings suggest that a person’s lifetime health-related
experiences may be at least as important than his or her genetic make-up in
determining hip fracture risk in later years. Since broken hips are the most
serious manifestation of osteoporosis, Dr. Wark believes both genetic history
(e.g., whether one’s mother had low BMD, a hip fracture), lifestyle and
health-related experiences should be carefully examined when evaluating osteoporosis
risk.
For more information, visit www.asbmr.org.
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The ASBMR Annual Meeting is the pre-eminent scientific meeting on bone and mineral
metabolism. More than 5,000 delegates are expected to attend the October 1-5 meeting,
where approximately 1,900 scientific abstracts are presented. The ASBMR is the
premier professional, scientific and medical society established to promote excellence
in bone and mineral research and to facilitate the translation of that research
into clinical practice. The ASBMR has a membership of nearly 4,000 physicians,
basic research scientists, and clinical investigators. To learn more about the
Society and the field of bone and mineral research, visit the ASBMR website at
www.asbmr.org.
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