Abstract
Clasey JL, Janowiak AL, Gater DR. Relationship between regional bone density measurements and the time since injury in adults with spinal cord injuries. Arch Phys Med Rehabil 2004;85:59–64.
To determine the bone mineral density (BMD) of the legs, arms, and trunk region of a group of adults with spinal cord injury (SCI) and to determine the relationship between regional BMD values and the time since injury.
BMD measurements were determined by total-body, dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry scans and percentage values (percentage-matched BMD), based on manufacturer-supplied normative data for age, sex, body weight, and ethnic group. The relationship between percentage-matched BMD values and time since injury was determined by linear regression analyses.
Research laboratories in a university setting.
Twenty-nine subjects (21 men, 8 women; mean age, 38.5y) who had sustained an SCI a mean of 10.6 years earlier (range, 0.6–35.3y).
Not applicable.
The relationship between percentage-matched BMD values and the time since injury.
There was a significant inverse relationship between percentage-matched BMD leg (
r
2=−.76), arm (
r
2=−.45), and trunk (
r
2=−.38) values and the log of time since injury.
Despite the varying levels of SCI and other relevant BMD contributing factors, the regional percentage-matched BMD values were significantly inversely related to the log of time since injury.
