Abstract
Bone mineral density (BMD) is lower in the patients with depressive and anxiety symptoms, but the cause is unclear. This study aimed to examine the factors affecting the decrease of BMD in postmenopausal women with mental illness retrospectively. The subjects were 165 women whose proximal femoral and lumbar spinal (L2-4) BMD were simultaneously measured using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Age, menopause age, duration of exposure to estrogen, duration after menopause, height, weight, body mass index (BMI), times of delivery, habit of smoking or drinking, family history of bone fracture, and self-depression rating scale (SDS) were investigated. We selected 165 postmenopausal women aged from 40 to 59, including the cases with premature ovarian failure, and compared 72 women with mental illness (Group A) to 93 women without mental illness (Group B), using statistical analysis. Group A included 15 cases with depressive disorders, 12 cases with anxiety disorders, and 45 cases with adjustment disorders. The significant difference was not recognized in age, height, times of delivery, habit of smoking or drinking, and family history. The significant difference was recognized in menopause age, duration of exposure to estrogen, duration after menopause, weight, BMI. Both lumbar spinal BMD and proximal femoral BMD were significantly lower in Group A than Group B. Proximal femoral BMD was significantly lower than lumbar spinal BMD in both groups. Stepwise regression analysis selected postmenopausal period, body weight as explanatory variables for %YAM value of lumbar spine and proximal femur. As a result of analysis of covariance, there was no significant difference between the two groups on %YAM value, by adjusting the weight and postmenopausal period. It was suggested that loss of BMD in postmenopausal women was associated with low weight and prolonged postmenopausal period, but there was no association with mental illness.
