Bone mineral density and osteoarthritis: data from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging.

Background: Numerous cross-sectional studies have shown that persons with radiographic features of osteoarthritis (OA) of the hips and knees have higher adjusted levels of bone mineral density (BMD).

Objective: Data from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging were examined to determine (1) whether persons with radiographic features of OA of the hands and knees had different rates of bone loss than subjects with normal knee radiographs, and (2) whether persons with normal knee radiographs who had higher adjusted levels of BMD were at greater risk of developing radiographic features of knee OA.

Design: Longitudinal cohort study.

Growth hormone and sex steroid administration in healthy aged women and men: a randomized controlled trial.

Context: Hormone administration to elderly individuals can increase lean body mass (LBM) and decrease fat, but interactive effects of growth hormone (GH) and sex steroids and their influence on strength and endurance are unknown.

Objective: To evaluate the effects of recombinant human GH and/or sex steroids on body composition, strength, endurance, and adverse outcomes in aged persons.

Design, Setting, And Participants: A 26-week randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled parallel-group trial in healthy, ambulatory, community-dwelling US women (n = 57) and men (n = 74) aged 65 to 88 years recruited between June 1992 and July 1998.

Interrelationships of serum testosterone and free testosterone index with FFM and strength in aging men.

Muscle mass and strength losses during aging may be associated with declining levels of serum testosterone (T) in men. Few studies have shown a direct relationship between T and muscle mass and strength. Subjects were 262 men, aged 24-90 yr, from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging, who had T and sex hormone-binding globulin sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) measurements, from which the free T index (FTI) was calculated (T/SHBG) from serum samples collected longitudinally since 1963, total body fat mass and arm and leg fat-free mass (FFM) by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and arm and leg strength by dynanomometry.

Growth hormone and sex steroid effects on bone metabolism and bone mineral density in healthy aged women and men.

Background: Aging is associated with concomitant declines in activity of the growth hormone (GH) and gonadal steroid axes, and in bone mineral density (BMD), in both sexes. Long-term estrogen replacement slows bone loss and prevents fractures in postmenopausal women, whereas the effects of supplementation of GH or testosterone on bone metabolism and BMD in aged individuals remains uncertain.

Methods: Using a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind study design, we investigated the separate and interactive effects of 6 months of administration of recombinant human GH and/or gonadal steroids on bone biochemical markers and BMD in 125 healthy, older (>65 years) women (n = 53) and men (n = 72) with age-related reductions in GH and gonadal steroids.