Background: Uric acid is one of natural antioxidants in human body. There have been several studies on the correlation between uric acid with oxidative stress and osteoporosis. However, the data are insufficient and results are controversial. In this regard, we determined the association between uric acid levels and bone mineral density (BMD) during the postmenopausal period.
Methods: We analyzed data from 328 postmenopausal women (mean age, 57.3 ± 6.5 years; mean serum uric acid level, 4.6 ± 1.0 mg/dL). The participants were divided into three groups based on tertiles of the serum uric acid level. The participants receiving hormone replacement therapy (HRT), bisphosphonates, or lipid-lowering agents were included.
Results: Blood urea nitrogen, serum creatinine, and serum triglyceride levels were significantly higher in the upper tertiles of uric acid levels. No significant difference was found in the mean uric acid levels between medication users and non-users. Each HRT regimen had a different mean serum uric acid level. A cross-sectional analysis showed no significant correlation between the serum uric acid levels and BMD in the spine and femoral neck (spine BMD: 1.050 ± 0.131, 1.060 ± 0.160, 1.084 ± 0.140, p = 0.22; femoral neck BMD: 0.837 ± 0.110, 0.849 ± 0.096, 0.863 ± 0.115, p = 0.28 for each tertile of uric acid). Longitudinal analysis of data from 186 women with follow-up examinations at a mean interval of 14.6 months also revealed no difference in reduction in both spine and femoral neck BMD between tertile groups of serum uric acid (the median BMD reduction for spine: -0.02, 0.01, -0.04, p = 0.95; the median BMD reduction for femoral neck: 0.008, 0.005, -0.003, p = 0.34).
Conclusions: Serum uric acid level is not associated with BMD in postmenopausal women.
Keywords: antioxidant; bone mineral density; hormone replacement therapy; menopause; uric acid.