Abstract
The proportion of elderly people is increasing. Both atherosclerosis and osteoporosis are important factors in the quality of life of elderly people. Homocysteine reportedly accelerates atherosclerotic changes in vessels and disturbs collagen cross-linking in the extracellular bone matrix. In this study, the clinical significance of serum homocyteine was investigated for health promotion and evaluation. The subjects consisted of 992 people (men: women=672 : 320, mean age=46.3±10.3 years) who participated in a health evaluation and promotion. The cutoff point was determined to be 22.0μmol/L for men and 14.0μmol/L for women. The serum homocycteine level was elevated in 4.6% of the men and 2.6% of the women. Hypertension and fatty liver were found in men with a relatively high level of serum homocysteine. Moreover, hypertension was found in 85.8% of the men with a relatively high level of serum homocysteine who did not meet the Japanese diagnostic criteria for metabolic syndrome and had an abdominal circumference under 85cm. This frequency was significantly higher than 9.2% among men with a serum homocysteine level within the normal range. The bone mineral density (BMD) was measured in 58 people (men: women=15 : 43, mean age=47.8±10.5 years). A low BMD was only observed in 6 women. The serum homocysteine level tended to be higher in 5 menopausal women with a low BMD. All these women had risk factors for atherosclerosis. The above results suggest that the serum homocysteine level plays an important role in the association between atherosclerosis and osteoporosis.
