Bone Abstracts

Objective: Osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative, slowly developing joint disease. Although clinical indications of OA can vary among different definitions there is a general agreement that the disease is associated with cartilage narrowing. However, there is no general consensus about the threshold below which the joint space width (JSW)/joint space area (JSA) can be certain indicators for the state of OA. Therefore this study evaluates these limits to reveal quantitative inf...

Background and aims: Bone turnover markers (BTMs) are used in clinical practice for assessing patients with osteoporosis and their treatment. In Spain it is necessary to fine-tune the reference intervals, since they were established years ago in a low number of individuals. The aims of this study were to establish robust reference intervals for BTMs in healthy young premenopausal Spanish women and to investigate the factors influencing BTMs.Methods: 185 ...

Background: Autosomal dominant hypocalcaemia (ADH) is caused by activating mutations of the calcium sensing receptor (CaSR). Symptomatology ranges from asymptomatic hypocalcaemia to paraesthesia, tetani, laryngospasm and seizures. This is the first report of congenital hyperinsulinism (CHI) in a child with ADH.Presenting problem and clinical management: A female infant, born at term from non-consanguineous parents. She presented on D2 with persistent asy...

Tumor development occurs often by over-activation of members of the RAS-oncogene family (small GTPases (sGTPs)). By blocking the mevalonate pathway, aminobisphosphonates (BPs), and statines prevent activation of GTPs by inhibiting their post-translational prenylation. As we have shown, this induces apoptosis in U2OS osteosarcoma cells by re-activation of FAS expression via epigenetic DNA demethylation (1).The histone demethylase JHD...

Introduction: Bisphosphonates gain increasingly greater significance in treatment oncologic diseases with bone metastasis. However, a lot of articles have lately been published in dental and oncological journals on jaw osteonecrosis (ONJ) associated with long-term ingestion of bisphosphonates. Besides extension of clinical recommendations for zolendronate use, most commonly referred to in connection with ONJ, for treatment of Paget’s diseaseand other disturbances of bone ...

Objective: Serotonin is a neurotransmitter with multiple functions in the gastrointestinal tract and CNS. Recent animal studies indicate that serotonin regulates bone mass and remodelling. In humans, a handful of studies have shown decreased bone mineral density (BMD) in adults treated with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) for depressive symptoms. Although SSRI’s are prescribed in pediatric practice, there are few studies examining the effect of SSRIs on bon...

Objective: Vascular calcification contributes to the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis, hypercholesterolemia, end stage renal disease, and diabetes, and is caused by genetic ablation of matrix Gla protein (MGP) in mice. Genetic ablation of MGP in mice results in excessive calcification of the vessel wall associated with a chondrocyte-like trans-differentiation in smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). Canonical β-catenin signaling is activated in the calcified arterial Mgp&#8722...

Celiac disease (CD) is a frequent cause of malabsortion in childhood and affects calcium and vitamin D absorption.Aim: Analyze the vitamin D levels and bone mineral density (BMD) at diagnosis in patients affected with CD, and the influence of the age of diagnosis in the clinical presentation.Patient: 52 patients (female: 26) were evaluated.Results: The percentage with vitamin D deficiency (<20 ng/ml) was ...

Background and aims: Low bone formation is the main pathogenic mechanism of osteoporosis in primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC). Sclerostin, an inhibitor of the Wnt pathway, is involved in the regulation of osteoblastogenesis and little is known about its role in the development of bone disease in PBC. Thus, we evaluated the circulating levels of sclerostin and its relationship to bone mass, the parameters of mineral metabolism and liver disease severity.Met...

Background: Subcutaneous fat necrosis (SCFN) of the newborn is an uncommon condition most commonly seen in term infants who have experienced perinatal stress presenting as nodules or plaques on the face, back or upper extremities. The associated complication of hypercalcemia is thought to be secondary to elevated 1,25-OH vitamin D from increased expression of 1-alpha hydroxylase from inflammatory granulomatous cells. However the natural history of SCFN, associated hypercalcemi...