The bone and fat connection in inflammatory bowel diseases

Abstract

Osteopenia and osteoporosis are common manifestations in inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) but the pathogenetic mechanism of bone loss in IBD is only partially understood. There is evidence that fat mass is an important determinant of the bone mineral density and adipose-derived factors seem to play an important role for the association between fat mass and bone mass. The association between adiposity and low bone density is rather poorly studied in IBD, but emerging data on adipokines in IBD in relation to osteoporosis provide a novel pathophysiological concept that may shed light on the etiology of bone loss in IBD. It could be suggested that adipokines interfere in bone metabolism by altering the sensitive balance between osteoblasts and osteoclasts although further studies in this setting are needed.