Published in:
01-01-2015 | Editorial
Estrogens, the be-all and end-all of male hypogonadal bone loss?
Authors:
M. R. Laurent, E. Gielen, D. Vanderschueren
Published in:
Osteoporosis International
|
Issue 1/2015
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Excerpt
Gender is one of the strongest predictors of osteoporotic fracture risk, second only to ageing. A recent systematic review of worldwide epidemiology revealed that hip fracture incidence is about twofold lower in men compared to women, despite greater than tenfold variation between geographic regions [
1]. This lower fracture incidence occurs despite persisting underdiagnosis and undertreatment of osteoporosis in men, which probably explains why hip fracture incidence may be decreasing in women but not men [
2‐
5]. It is well known that men generally have a more robust body composition; even after correction for an average 10 % greater height and bone length, men at the age of peak bone mass have 25 % greater bone mineral content [
6], almost 50 % greater muscle mass and power and half the fat mass of women [
7]. Conversely, late-onset male hypogonadism increases the risk of bone loss, muscle atrophy and fat accumulation [
3,
8]. Understanding the underlying mechanisms involved in this gender dimorphism in body composition may thus identify additional therapeutic targets not only for osteoporosis, but also for sarcopenia and obesity. …