Increased Cortical Porosity and Reduced Trabecular Density Are Not Necessarily Synonymous With Bone Loss and Microstructural Deterioration.

Absolute values of cortical porosity and trabecular density are used to estimate fracture risk, but these values are the net result of their growth-related assembly and age-related deterioration. Because bone loss affects both cortical and trabecular bone, we hypothesized that a surrogate measure of bone fragility should capture the age-related deterioration of both traits, and should do so independently of their peak values. Accordingly, we developed a structural fragility score (SFS), which quantifies the increment in distal radial cortical porosity and decrement in trabecular density relative to their premenopausal mean values in 99 postmenopausal women with forearm fractures and 105 controls using HR-pQCT. We expressed the results as odds ratios (ORs; 95% CI). Cortical porosity was associated with fractures in the presence of deteriorated trabecular density (OR 2.30; 95% CI, 1.30 to 4.05;