Bone mineral density in young adult women with congenital adrenal hyperplasia

BACKGROUND: There is equipoise regarding the status of bone mineral density (BMD) in patients with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH), where patients need to be on long-term low-dose steroids. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to evaluate BMD at the hip, spine and forearm in women with CAH and compare it to healthy young adult women of the same age range. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Fifteen adult women with CAH with age ranging from 18 to 40 years (mean ± standard deviation = 27.5 ± 6.2 years) underwent dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry along with laboratory evaluation. BMD at lumbar spine, hip, forearm along with T-scores were measured. Serum total calcium, phosphate, alkaline phosphatase, 25 hydroxy Vitamin D, intact parathyroid hormone, total testosterone, and dehydroepiandrosterone were assayed. History of any fractures in the past was taken. Fifteen healthy women in the same age range were taken as controls for comparison. RESULTS: The BMD at hip (0.85 ± 0.02 g/cm(2)) in CAH was significantly lower as compared with controls (0.92 ± 0.03 g/cm(2), P = 0.029). BMD at lumbar spine was also reduced (0.96 ± 0.02 vs. 1.03 ± 0.03, P = 0.057). The BMD at forearm was not significantly different between CAH and controls. The mean Vitamin D was 9.8 ng/ml (deficient range). There was no history of fractures in CAH. CONCLUSION: Young adult CAH women had lower BMD at spine and hip than healthy young adult women of the same age range. The forearm BMD was not different from controls. No change in fracture frequency was present. Patients with CAH being treated with steroids are at increased risk of osteopenia, and their bone health needs to be monitored.