Age, weight, use of oral corticosteroids associated with risk of height loss over five years
THURSDAY, May 31, 2018 (HealthDay News) — A set of commonly available variables may be useful in predicting the five-year risk of height loss ≥1 inch in postmenopausal women, according to a study published online May 7 in Menopause.
Xiaodan Mai, Ph.D., from the University at Buffalo in New York, and colleagues identified factors that could predict prospective height loss in 1,024 postmenopausal women participating in the Buffalo Osteoporosis and Periodontal Disease Study.
The researchers found that over five years of follow-up, the mean loss of height was 0.4 inches. Marked height loss was significantly associated with age (odds ratio [OR], 1.11), weight (OR, 1.05), use of oral corticosteroids (OR, 4.96), and strenuous exercise at age 18 years at least three times per week (OR, 0.55). The area under the receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve was 72.1 percent. The discriminatory ability of the prediction model was not improved with the addition of bone mineral density measures.
“These findings may help to target older women at risk of height loss who may benefit most from prevention strategies for fracture and mortality,” the authors write.
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