MONDAY, June 6 (HealthDay News) -- Increased wrinkling or decreased skin firmness in early menopausal women may indicate reduced bone mineral density (BMD), according to a study presented at ENDO 2011, the annual meeting of The Endocrine Society, held from June 4 to 7 in Boston.
Lubna Pal, M.D., M.B.B.S., from the Yale School of Medicine in New Haven, Conn., and colleagues examined the association between skin wrinkling or firmness and BMD in 114 early menopausal women. Skin wrinkles were assessed at 11 sites on the face and neck, and skin rigidity at the forehead and cheek was measured. BMD was assessed at the lumbar spine, left hip, and total body by dual X-ray absorptiometry, and with bone ultrasound attenuation (BUA) by quantitative heel ultrasound. The correlation between BMD and skin parameters was analyzed after adjusting for age, body mass, race and ethnicity, age at menopause, history of smoking, intake of multivitamins, and enrollment site.
The investigators identified a significant inverse relationship between skin wrinkles and total-body, spine, and femoral neck BMD. However, significant positive associations were seen between skin rigidity and BMD at the spine and left femoral neck, and with BUA. Increased wrinkling at the forehead glabellar region was independently associated with reduced BMD at the femoral neck. Increased skin rigidity at the face and forehead independently predicted BMD at the hip and spine, and BUA.
"In a population of early postmenopausal women, study of the skin is observed to provide a glimpse into the status of the skeleton, a relationship not previously described," the authors write.
Abstract No. P3-126 (subscription or payment may be required)
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