Introduction: Aging is associated with an increase in the risk of falls and fractures in elderly osteoporotic women in addition to low bone mass and muscle atrophy. We aimed to assess relationship between paraspinal muscle thickness and bone mineral den- sity in postmenopausal women.
Materials and methods: Overall, 95 postmenopausal women were included into the study. Back pain was assessed by using Numeric Rating Scale (NRS). Bone mineral density (BMD) was measured with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) at the lum- bar spine and femoral neck. Postmenopausal women were classified into 3 groups as osteopenia, osteoporosis and normal BMD according to WHO. Quality of life was assessed by using Quality of Life Questionnaire of the European Foundation for Osteoporosis (QUALEFFO-41). Paraspinal muscle thickness was measured from 4 cm lateral to midline by sonography at the level of the 10th thoracic spine.
Results: No significant difference was detected between groups regarding duration of weekly exercises, back pain (NRS) and QUALEFFO values (p>0.05). In the osteoporosis group, mean muscle thickness was found to be lower in both right and left side when compared to those in osteopenia and normal BMD group (p<0.01). In addition, mean muscle thickness was found to be lower in both right and left side in osteopenia when compared to normal BMD group (p<0.01).
Conclusion: Our study indicates that reduction in bone mass is related to decrease in muscle mass.
Paraspinal muscle thickness, osteoporosis, musculoskeletal ultrasonography
10.19193/0393-6384_2016_2_42