Top

Published in:

01-08-2014 | Original Research

Tibial and Fibular Mid-Shaft Bone Traits in Young and Older Sprinters and Non-Athletic Men

Authors: Timo Rantalainen, Rachel L. Duckham, Harri Suominen, Ari Heinonen, Markku Alén, Marko T. Korhonen

Published in: Calcified Tissue International | Issue 2/2014

Abstract

High impact loading is known to prevent some of the age-related bone loss but its effects on the density distribution of cortical bone are relatively unknown. This study examined the effects of age and habitual sprinting on tibial and fibular mid-shaft bone traits (structural, cortical radial and polar bone mineral density distributions). Data from 67 habitual male sprinters aged 19–39 and 65–84 years, and 60 non-athletic men (referents) aged 21–39 and 65–80 years are reported. Tibial and fibular mid-shaft bone traits (strength strain index SSI, cortical density CoD, and polar and radial cortical density distributions) were assessed with peripheral quantitative computed tomography. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) adjusted for height and body mass indicated that the sprinters had 21 % greater tibial SSI (P < 0.001) compared to the referents, with no group × age-group interaction (P = 0.54). At the fibula no group difference or group × age-group interaction was identified (P = 0.12–0.81). For tibial radial density distribution ANCOVA indicated no group × radial division (P = 0.50) or group × age-group × division interaction (P = 0.63), whereas an age × radial division interaction was observed (P < 0.001). For polar density distribution, no age-group × polar sector (P = 0.21), group × polar sector (P = 0.46), or group × age-group × polar sector interactions were detected (P = 0.15). Habitual sprint training appears to maintain tibial bone strength, but not radial cortical density distribution into older age. Fibular bone strength appeared unaffected by habitual sprinting.

Cummings SR, Melton LJ (2002) Epidemiology and outcomes of osteoporotic fractures. The Lancet 359(9319):1761–1767. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(02)08657-9 CrossRef

Keaveny TM, Kopperdahl DL, Melton LJ et al (2010) Age-dependence of femoral strength in white women and men. J Bone Miner Res 25(5):994–1001PubMedCentralPubMed

Karinkanta S, Piirtola M, Sievänen H et al (2010) Physical therapy approaches to reduce fall and fracture risk among older adults. Nat Rev Endocrinol 6(7):396–407. doi:10.1038/nrendo.2010.70 PubMedCrossRef

Asikainen T-M, Kukkonen-Harjula K, Miilunpalo S (2004) Exercise for health for early postmenopausal women: a systematic review of randomised controlled trials. Sports Med Auckl NZ 34(11):753–778

Nikander R, Sievanen H, Heinonen A et al (2010) Targeted exercise against osteoporosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis for optimising bone strength throughout life. BMC Med 8(1):47. doi:10.1186/1741-7015-8-47 PubMedCentralPubMedCrossRef

Wilks DC, Winwood K, Gilliver SF et al (2009) Bone mass and geometry of the tibia and the radius of master sprinters, middle and long distance runners, race-walkers and sedentary control participants: a pQCT study. Bone 45(1):91–97. doi:10.1016/j.bone.2009.03.660 PubMedCentralPubMedCrossRef

Weidauer LA, Eilers MM, Binkley TL et al (2012) Effect of different collegiate sports on cortical bone in the tibia. J Musculoskelet Neuronal Interact 12(2):68–73PubMed

Rantalainen T, Nikander R, Heinonen A et al (2010) Direction-specific diaphyseal geometry and mineral mass distribution of tibia and fibula: a pQCT study of female athletes representing different exercise loading types. Calcif Tissue Int 86(6):447–454. doi:10.1007/s00223-010-9358-z PubMedCrossRef

Marchi D, Shaw CN (2011) Variation in fibular robusticity reflects variation in mobility patterns. J Hum Evol 61(5):609–616. doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2011.08.005 PubMedCrossRef

10.

Mikkola TM, Sipilä S, Rantanen T et al (2008) Genetic and environmental influence on structural strength of weight-bearing and non–weight-bearing bone: a twin study. J Bone Miner Res 23(4):492–498. doi:10.1359/jbmr.071205 PubMedCrossRef

11.

Mikkola TM, Sipilä S, Rantanen T et al (2009) Muscle cross-sectional area and structural bone strength share genetic and environmental effects in older women. J Bone Miner Res 24(2):338–345. doi:10.1359/jbmr.081008 PubMedCrossRef

12.

Ma H, Leskinen T, Alen M et al (2009) Long-term leisure time physical activity and properties of bone: a twin study. J Bone Miner Res 24(8):1427–1433. doi:10.1359/jbmr.090309 PubMedCrossRef

13.

Macdonald HM, Cooper DML, McKay HA (2008) Anterior–posterior bending strength at the tibial shaft increases with physical activity in boys: evidence for non-uniform geometric adaptation. Osteoporos Int 20(1):61–70. doi:10.1007/s00198-008-0636-9 PubMedCrossRef

14.

Leppanen OV, Sievanen H, Jokihaara J et al (2010) The effects of loading and estrogen on rat bone growth. J Appl Physiol 108(6):1737–1744. doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.00989.2009 PubMedCrossRef

15.

Cheng S, Sipilä S, Taaffe DR et al (2002) Change in bone mass distribution induced by hormone replacement therapy and high-impact physical exercise in post-menopausal women. Bone 31(1):126–135PubMedCrossRef

16.

Rantalainen T, Nikander R, Daly RM et al (2011) Exercise loading and cortical bone distribution at the tibial shaft. Bone 48(4):786–791. doi:10.1016/j.bone.2010.11.013 PubMedCrossRef

17.

Rantalainen T, Nikander R, Heinonen A et al (2011) An open source approach for regional cortical bone mineral density analysis. J Musculoskelet Neuronal Interact 11(3):243–248PubMed

18.

Feik SA, Thomas CDL, Bruns R, Clement JG (2000) Regional variations in cortical modeling in the femoral mid-shaft: sex and age differences. Am J Phys Anthropol 112(2):191–205PubMedCrossRef

19.

Bell KL, Loveridge N, Power J et al (1999) Regional differences in cortical porosity in the fractured femoral neck. Bone 24(1):57–64PubMedCrossRef

20.

Zebaze R, Ghasem-Zadeh A, Bohte A et al (2010) Intracortical remodelling and porosity in the distal radius and post-mortem femurs of women: a cross-sectional study. The Lancet 375(9727):1729–1736CrossRef

21.

Atkinson PJ, Weatherell JA (1967) Variation in the density of the femoral diaphysis with age. J Bone Joint Surg Br 49:781–788PubMed

22.

Carballido-Gamio J, Harnish R, Saeed I et al (2013) Proximal femoral density distribution and structure in relation to age and hip fracture risk in women. J Bone Miner Res 28(3):537–546PubMedCentralPubMedCrossRef

23.

Seeman E (1998) Growth in bone mass and size—are racial and gender differences in bone mineral density more apparent than real? J Clin Endocrinol Metab 83(5):1414–1419. doi:10.1210/jc.83.5.1414 PubMed

24.

Bousson V, Bergot C, Meunier A et al (2000) CT of the middiaphyseal femur: cortical bone mineral density and relation to porosity1. Radiology 217(1):179–187PubMedCrossRef

25.

Bailey CA, Kukuljan S, Daly RM (2010) Effects of lifetime loading history on cortical bone density and its distribution in middle-aged and older men. Bone 47(3):673–680. doi:10.1016/j.bone.2010.06.027 PubMedCrossRef

26.

McNeil CJ, Raymer GH, Doherty TJ et al (2009) Geometry of a weight-bearing and non-weight-bearing bone in the legs of young, old, and very old men. Calcif Tissue Int 85(1):22–30. doi:10.1007/s00223-009-9261-7 PubMedCrossRef

27.

Holzer G, von Skrbensky G, Holzer LA, Pichl W (2009) Hip fractures and the contribution of cortical versus trabecular bone to femoral neck strength. J Bone Miner Res 24(3):468–474. doi:10.1359/jbmr.081108 PubMedCrossRef

28.

Koivumäki JEM, Thevenot J, Pulkkinen P et al (2012) Cortical bone finite element models in the estimation of experimentally measured failure loads in the proximal femur. Bone 51(4):737–740. doi:10.1016/j.bone.2012.06.026 PubMedCrossRef

29.

Rantalainen T, Sievänen H, Linnamo V et al (2009) Bone rigidity to neuromuscular performance ratio in young and elderly men. Bone 45(5):956–963. doi:10.1016/j.bone.2009.07.014 PubMedCrossRef

30.

Rantalainen T, Heinonen A, Komi PV, Linnamo V (2008) Neuromuscular performance and bone structural characteristics in young healthy men and women. Eur J Appl Physiol 102(2):215–222. doi:10.1007/s00421-007-0575-8 PubMedCrossRef

31.

Korhonen MT, Heinonen A, Siekkinen J et al (2012) Bone density, structure and strength, and their determinants in aging sprint athletes. Med Sci Sports Exerc 44(12):2340–2349. doi:10.1249/MSS.0b013e318267c954 PubMedCrossRef

32.

Rantalainen T, Hoffrén M, Linnamo V et al (2011) Three-month bilateral hopping intervention is ineffective in initiating bone biomarker response in healthy elderly men. Eur J Appl Physiol 111(9):2155–2162. doi:10.1007/s00421-011-1849-8 PubMedCrossRef

33.

Ashe MC, Khan KM, Kontulainen SA et al (2006) Accuracy of pQCT for evaluating the aged human radius: an ashing, histomorphometry and failure load investigation. Osteoporos Int J Establ Result Coop Eur Found Osteoporos Natl Osteoporos Found USA 17(8):1241–1251. doi:10.1007/s00198-006-0110-5 CrossRef

34.

Doube M, Kłosowski MM, Arganda-Carreras I et al (2010) BoneJ: free and extensible bone image analysis in ImageJ. Bone 47(6):1076–1079. doi:10.1016/j.bone.2010.08.023 PubMedCentralPubMedCrossRef

35.

Genant HK, Engelke K, Hanley DA et al (2010) Denosumab improves density and strength parameters as measured by QCT of the radius in postmenopausal women with low bone mineral density. Bone 47(1):131–139. doi:10.1016/j.bone.2010.04.594 PubMedCrossRef

36.

Nikander R, Kannus P, Dastidar P et al (2009) Targeted exercises against hip fragility. Osteoporos Int 20(8):1321–1328. doi:10.1007/s00198-008-0785-x PubMedCrossRef

37.

Weidauer LA, Binkley TL, Berry R, Specker BL (2013) Variation in cortical density within the cortical shell of individuals across a range in densities and ages. J Musculoskelet Neuronal Interact 13(1):89–96PubMed

38.

Smock AJ, Hughes JM, Popp KL et al (2009) Bone volumetric density, geometry, and strength in female and male collegiate runners. Med Sci Sports Exerc 41(11):2026–2032. doi:10.1249/MSS.0b013e3181a7a5a2 PubMedCrossRef

39.

Kontulainen S, Sievänen H, Kannus P et al (2003) Effect of long-term impact-loading on mass, size, and estimated strength of humerus and radius of female racquet-sports players: a peripheral quantitative computed tomography study between young and old starters and controls. J Bone Miner Res 18(2):352–359. doi:10.1359/jbmr.2003.18.2.352 PubMedCrossRef

40.

Neil JMB, Schweitzer ME (2008) Humeral cortical and trabecular changes in the throwing athlete: a quantitative computed tomography study of male college baseball players. J Comput Assist Tomogr 32(3):492–496. doi:10.1097/RCT.0b013e31811ec72d PubMedCrossRef

41.

Ireland A, Maden-Wilkinson T, Mcphee J et al (2013) Upper limb muscle-bone asymmetries and bone adaptation in elite youth tennis players. Med Sci Sports Exerc 45:1749–1758. doi:10.1249/MSS.0b013e31828f882f PubMedCrossRef

42.

Jepsen KJ, Centi A, Duarte GF et al (2011) Biological constraints that limit compensation of a common skeletal trait variant lead to inequivalence of tibial function among healthy young adults. J Bone Miner Res 26(12):2872–2885. doi:10.1002/jbmr.497 PubMedCrossRef

43.

Jepsen KJ, Evans R, Negus CH et al (2013) Variation in tibial functionality and fracture susceptibility among healthy, young adults arises from the acquisition of biologically distinct sets of traits. J Bone Miner Res 28(6):1290–1300. doi:10.1002/jbmr.1879 PubMedCrossRef

44.

Giladi M, Milgrom C, Simkin A et al (1987) Stress fractures and tibial bone width. A risk factor. J Bone Joint Surg Br 69(2):326–329PubMed

45.

Popp KL, Hughes JM, Smock AJ et al (2009) Bone geometry, strength, and muscle size in runners with a history of stress fracture. Med Sci Sports Exerc 41(12):2145–2150. doi:10.1249/MSS.0b013e3181a9e772 PubMedCrossRef

46.

Roschger P, Paschalis EP, Fratzl P, Klaushofer K (2008) Bone mineralization density distribution in health and disease. Bone 42(3):456–466. doi:10.1016/j.bone.2007.10.021 PubMedCrossRef

47.

Gan AWT, Puhaindran ME, Pho RWH (2013) The reconstruction of large bone defects in the upper limb. Injury 44(3):313–317. doi:10.1016/j.injury.2013.01.014 CrossRef

48.

Atkins RM, Madhavan P, Sudhakar J, Whitwell D (1999) Ipsilateral vascularised fibular transport for massive defects of the tibia. J Bone Joint Surg Br 81(6):1035–1040PubMedCrossRef

49.

Ducher G, Daly RM, Hill B et al (2009) Relationship between indices of adiposity obtained by peripheral quantitative computed tomography and dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry in pre-pubertal children. Ann Hum Biol 36(6):705–716. doi:10.3109/03014460903055139 PubMedCrossRef

50.

Burt LA, Naughton GA, Greene DA, Ducher G (2011) Skeletal differences at the ulna and radius between pre-pubertal non-elite female gymnasts and non-gymnasts. J Musculoskelet Neuronal Interact 11(3):227–233PubMed

Title: Tibial and Fibular Mid-Shaft Bone Traits in Young and Older Sprinters and Non-Athletic Men
Authors: Timo Rantalainen
Rachel L. Duckham
Harri Suominen
Ari Heinonen
Markku Alén
Marko T. Korhonen
Publication date: 01-08-2014
Publisher: Springer US
Published in: Calcified Tissue International / Issue 2/2014
Print ISSN: 0171-967X
Electronic ISSN: 1432-0827
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00223-014-9881-4

ACC 2024 Congress Coverage

Heart Failure Video

At a glance: The ONWARDS insulin icodec trials

Springer Medicine

Tibial and Fibular Mid-Shaft Bone Traits in Young and Older Sprinters and Non-Athletic Men

Abstract

ACC 2024 Congress Coverage

Year in Review: Heart failure and cardiomyopathies

Semaglutide benefits people with type 2 diabetes and obesity-related heart failure

Incentivised to exercise

New intervention for STEMI-related cardiogenic shock

» View more highlights on the ACC 2024 congress hub page

At a glance: The ONWARDS insulin icodec trials

Springer Medicine

Abstract

Please log in to get access to this content

Other articles of this Issue 2/2014

Impact of Dietary Aromatic Amino Acids on Osteoclastic Activity

Reduced Tissue-Level Stiffness and Mineralization in Osteoporotic Cancellous Bone

Clinical Setting Influences Patterns of Interaction between Osteoporosis Patient and Physician

Subregional DXA-Derived Vertebral Bone Mineral Measures are Stronger Predictors of Failure Load in Specimens with Lower Areal Bone Mineral Density, Compared to Those with Higher Areal Bone Mineral Density

Effect of Intermittent and Daily Regimens of Minodronic Acid on Bone Metabolism in an Ovariectomized Rat Model of Osteoporosis

The Ratio of Anterior and Posterior Vertebral Heights Reinforces the Utility of DXA in Assessment of Vertebrae Strength

ACC 2024 Congress Coverage

Year in Review: Heart failure and cardiomyopathies

Semaglutide benefits people with type 2 diabetes and obesity-related heart failure

Incentivised to exercise

New intervention for STEMI-related cardiogenic shock

» View more highlights on the ACC 2024 congress hub page