The associations of body composition and fat distribution with bone mineral density in elderly Italian men and women.

This study aimed to investigate the associations of body composition and fat distribution with bone mineral density (BMD) in elderly Italian subjects. In 866 women (age 64.2±6.5yr) and 168 men (age 65.1±6.1yr), we measured BMD at lumbar spine, at femur, at the total body, and at the right hand. In all subjects, we also measured sex hormones, 25-hydroxyvitamin D, bone markers, and calcium intake. In both men and women, all body composition parameters had significant positive correlations with BMD at all sites after adjusting for age only; after adjusting also for body weight only lean mass (LM) remained positively associated with BMD at all sites except BMD at lumbar spine. In males, LM was associated with BMD at all sites, whereas android fat was associated with BMD at lumbar spine, at femur, and at whole body. In females, fat mass (FM) was positively and age inversely associated with BMD at all sites, whereas gynoid fat and alkaline phosphatase were inversely associated with BMD at lumbar spine and at femur. In conclusion, the role of LM seems more important in males, whereas in women the role of FM prevails with negative associations between gynoid fat and BMD.