Comparison of Bone Mineral Density, T-Scores and Serum Zinc between Diabetic and Non Diabetic Postmenopausal Women with Osteoporosis

CONTEXT: Postmenopausal osteoporosis is a public health problem. Diabetics are at increased risk of osteoporosis-related fractures. Zinc (Zn) has a role in collagen metabolism, and its levels are altered in diabetes. AIMS: The aim was to compare bone mineral density (BMD), T-score and serum Zn between diabetic and nondiabetic postmenopausal women with osteoporosis to see if they influence increased fracture risk in diabetes. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: It is a cross.sectional study conducted at Department of Biochemistry, Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, Belgaum. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty type 2 diabetic and 30 age-matched (aged 45-75 years) nondiabetic Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) confirmed postmenopausal osteoporotics were included from January 2011 to March 2012. Serum Zn was analyzed by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: Mean and standard deviation of the parameters of the two groups were computed and compared by unpaired Student's t-test. Relationship between variables was measured by Karl Pearson's correlation co-efficient. A statistical significance is set at 5% level of significance (P < 0.05). RESULTS: T-score was significantly higher in diabetics compared with nondiabetics (−2.84 ± 0.42 vs. −3.22 ± 0.74) P < 0.05. BMD and serum Zn of diabetics showed a significant positive correlation with body mass index (BMI). CONCLUSIONS: Type 2 diabetic postmenopausal osteoporotics have a higher T-score than the nondiabetics. High BMI in type-2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) may contribute to high BMD and may be a protective factor against zincuria. Increased fracture risk in T2DM could be due to other factors like poor bone quality due to hyperglycemia rather than BMD. Strict glycemic control is of paramount importance.