Homocysteine Levels and Osteoporotic Fracture in a Population Aged 55 Years Over in Medan District Indonesia

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Osteoporosis is a chronic, progressive, systemic, skeletal, multifactorial disorder characterized by low bone mass, microarchitectural deterioration of bone tissues that increased the risk of fragility fracture. The increased prevalence of early osteoporosis in homocystinuria illustrates that homocysteine metabolism is involved in the process of osteoporosis. AIM: This study was aimed to look for the relationship between homocysteine levels in the blood and the occurrence of osteoporotic fractures in the population above 55 years old. METHODS: This is a descriptive study with cross-sectional approach, total sixty-five patients aged 55 years or older with osteoporotic fracture and as a control group without osteoporotic fracture. Blood pressure, heart rate, and body weight were recorded, bone density was measured using central dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) machine/ DXA and homocysteine plasma levels were measured using the enzyme-linked immunoassay method. RESULTS: Total of 65 samples with age range between 55 and 88 years, they were 38 peoples with osteoporosis, which 12 got the osteoporotic fracture. Among the 16 samples in osteopenia group, two got the fracture, among 11 samples with normal bone density, one got the osteoporotic fracture. There was statistical significant between fracture and bone mineral density (p = 0.00) and no statistical significant between bone density and gender (p = 0.08), bone density and body mass index (BMI) (p = 0.11). There was statistical significant correlation between homocysteine and age (p = 0.02), age and bone density (p = 0.002) but no statistical significant correlation between homocysteine and BMI (p = 0.07), homocysteine and osteoporotic fracture (p = 0.87). CONCLUSIONS: Homocysteine level did not increased the incidence of osteoporotic fracture, however homocysteine increased with aging and correlated with bone mineral density.