Bone Mineral Density in Iranian Female patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis

Background: Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are at increased risk of developing low bone mineral density. The aim of the present study was to compare the bone mineral density of Iranian female RA patients with healthy controls. Materials and methods: In this case-control study, bone mineral density of 391 rheumatoid arthritis patients and 391 healthy controls referred during a 4-year period (2003-2007) to Imam Khomeini Hospital in Tehran, were studied. Patients were assigned in two subgroups; group 1 (n=184) with a history of current oral corticosteroid use and group 2 (n=207) with-out corticosteroid use. Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry technique was used to measure bone density. Differences between groups were analyzed using Fisherʹs exact test. Duncan test and Schaffer test were used to compare mean difference between each two groups. Results: Among ?45 and > 60 years females, bone density did not show a significant differ-ence at lumbar region between the 3 groups, however, the differences at femoral neck were statistically significant (p < 0.04 for ?45 years and p < 0.0003 for > 60 years). Among subjects aged 46-60 years, bone mineral density showed significant differences at both lumbar and femoral neck regions (p < 0.001, p < 0.001, respectively). Conclusion: Low bone density in Iranian female patients with RA is in accordance with west-ern societies. Among RA female patients the risk of BMD reduction is increased by age and partly by oral glucocorticoids. Therefore, routine BMD evaluation is strongly suggested for RA patients.