Influence of glucocorticoids for the bone mineral density in rheumatoid arthritis and seronegative spondyloarthropathies

Glucocorticoids are commonly used for treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and seronegative spondyloarthropathies. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of the glucocorticoids for the bone mineral density of patients with chronic autoimmune arthritides, to evaluate the importance of the duration and dosage of the treatment, and to compare with well-known risk factors for osteoporosis: age and sex of patients, duration of menopause, length of the arthritis-related functional insufficiency. One-hundred-eighty-eight rheumatoid arthritis and 97 seronegative spondyloarthropathies patients were investigated. Bone mineral density was examined by the method of dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (Hologic QDR 4500 W) in the vertebral bodies of the lumbar spine and the hip. Relative risk of glucocorticoids for development of osteopenia and osteoporosis was moderate, less significant than the impact of patient\u92s age. Negative influence of glucocorticoids on the bone mineral density was related with cumulative dose and duration of the treatment. In rheumatoid arthritis patients it was more significant, than in cases of seronegative spondyloarthropathies. Diminishing of the bone mineral density was more important in the lumbar spine, the changes in hip mineralization were less expressed in both diseases