Young Women with RA Have Increased Risk of Broken Bones

Women under the age of 50 with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) have an increased risk of breaking bones compared with women who do not have the condition, according to a Mayo Clinic study being presented today at the annual scientific meeting of the American College of Rheumatology in Chicago.

The researchers looked at two groups of 1,155 adults each from the same community. Participants in one group had recently received a diagnosis of RA, while those in the other group did not have the condition. Participants were each paired with someone in the other group based on gender and age, and the medical records of each pair were monitored for new fractures unrelated to cancer or severe trauma.

In both women and men with RA, new fractures were more common than in their counterparts without RA, regardless of the age at which they were diagnosed with the condition. Women with RA under the age of 50 were more likely than those without RA to have a fracture before the age of 50, while men with RA became more vulnerable to fractures only after the age of 50.

In a discussion of the study included on the Mayo Clinic’s news blog, lead researcher, Shreyasee Amin, MD, a rheumatologist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., explained that the increased risk of fracture may be due to steroids such as prednisone used to treat RA as well as bone loss caused by inactivity and bone loss caused by proteins that are responsible for the inflammation that accompanies the condition. To help prevent fractures, Amin recommended taking measures to guard against falls, including installing grab bars in the bathroom, low-skid mats in the bathtub, and nightlights to guide the way to the bathroom, and removing loose wiring and rugs.

Source

Mayo Clinic: Young Women with Rheumatoid Arthritis at More Risk for Broken Bones [Mayo Clinic Press Release]