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Plasma Leptin Concentration and Change in Bone Density Among Elderly Men and Women: The Hertfordshire Cohort Study

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Abstract

Several studies have shown an association between circulating leptin concentration and bone mineral density, but most studies are cross-sectional in design and report findings in women only. We performed a population-based longitudinal study relating baseline plasma leptin concentration to bone mass at the lumbar spine and femoral neck and to change in bone density at these sites over four years in a cohort of 302 men and women aged 60–75 years born and still resident in Hertfordshire, UK. Baseline plasma leptin concentration was strongly positively correlated with body mass index (men: r = 0.71, P < 0.000l; women: r = 0.79, P < 0.0001) and with bone mineral content, bone mineral density, and volumetric bone mineral density at all sites (r = 0.24–0.36, P < 0.001) in both sexes; associations with change in bone density were markedly weaker and inconsistent. Adjustment for adult lifestyle determinants of osteoporosis made little difference to our results, but the associations of leptin with bone mass were no longer significant after adjustment for body mass index. These results suggest that the relationship between plasma leptin and bone mass is similar in men and women and that it is mediated through the strong association of both variables with adiposity, rather than through a direct association of leptin on bone cell function.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the men and women who participated in the study and the nurses and radiology staff who administered the bone density measurements. Computing support was provided by Vanessa Cox, and the manuscript was prepared by Gill Strange. Plasma leptin was measured by Peter Wood. The study was funded by the Medical Research Council.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. MRC Epidemiology Resource Centre, University of Southampton, Southampton General Hospital, Southampton SO16 6YD, United Kingdom

    E. M. Dennison, H. E. Syddall, C. H. Fall, M. K. Javaid, N. K. Arden, D. I. W. Phillips & C. Cooper

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  1. E. M. Dennison
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  2. H. E. Syddall
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  3. C. H. Fall
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  4. M. K. Javaid
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  5. N. K. Arden
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  6. D. I. W. Phillips
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  7. C. Cooper
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Correspondence to C. Cooper.

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Dennison, E., Syddall, H., Fall, C. et al. Plasma Leptin Concentration and Change in Bone Density Among Elderly Men and Women: The Hertfordshire Cohort Study . Calcif Tissue Int 74, 401–406 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00223-002-0017-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00223-002-0017-x

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