A four-year longitudinal study of bone loss in patients with inflammatory bowel disease.

Serial measurements of spinal trabecular and radial cortical bone density were made over 4 years in 70 patients with inflammatory bowel disease. Mean rates of bone loss for the cohort differed little from rates reported in normal populations; however, some patients showed increased rates of loss, including patients whose bone density at entry to the study was already well below normal. There was a significant correlation between the amount of corticosteroid prescribed and spinal trabecular bone loss in males, but no significant correlation with other clinical parameters. Increased rates of bone loss emphasise the need for bone densitometry and prophylactic measures in patients with inflammatory bowel disease.