Table 1.
Patients’ baseline characteristics and demographics.
| # | Patients not treated with corticosteroids | Patients treated with corticosteroids |
|---|---|---|
| Female, n (%) | 30 (100) | 30 (100) |
| Race/ethnicity, n (%) | ||
| White | 30 (100) | 30 (100) |
| Age (yr), mean (SD) | 67.5 (9.0) | 66.7 (7.9) |
| Age (yr) of menopause (SD) | 47 (3.0) | 48.2 (2.3) |
| Osteoporosis occurrence (yr) | 63 (8.3) | 61 (7.5) |
| Height (cm), mean (SD) | 158 (5.9) | 157 (5.7) |
| Weight (kg), mean (SD) | 59 (14.1) | 68 (12.7) |
| Smoking (Yes/No/Missing (%)) | 13/80/7 | 13/77/10 |
| Family predisposition, fractures (Yes/No (%)) | 27/73 | 20/80 |
| Rheumatology disease (Yes/No (%)) | 23/77 | 97/3 |
| Endocrine disease (Yes/No (%)) | 6.6/93.4 | 3/97 |
| Treatment with cortisone drug (%) | No (100) | Yes (100) |
| Administration of other medications (Yes/No (%)) | 20/80 | 90/10 |
| Fractures, total number (% of pts) | 0–3 (20) | 0–4 (50) |
| Lumbar fractures | 0–2 | 0–7 |
| Wrist fractures | 0–2 | 0–1 |
| Fractures of proximal femur | 0–1 | 0 |
| Previous osteoporosis treatment (Yes/No (%)) | 46.6/53.4 | 53.3/46.6 |
| Ca and vitamin D administration (Yes/NA (%)) | 43.3/56.7 | 70/30 |
| Lumbar spine T-score, n (%) | ||
| ≤−2.5 | 27 (83) | 24 (80) |
| >−2.5 | 3 (17) | 6 (20) |
| Total hip T-score, n (%) | ||
| ≤−2.5 | 13 (43.3) | 19 (63) |
| >−2.5 | 15 (50) | 11 (37) |
| Missing | 2 (6.7) | 0 |
| TBS, mean (SD) | 1.292 (0.08) | 1.168 (0.12) |
| Calcium (mmol/L), mean (SD)§ | 2.35 (0.1) | 2.37 (0.1) |
| Phosphorus (mmol/L), mean (SD)§ | 1.17 (0.2) | 1.13 (0.2) |
| Bone-specific alkaline phosphatase (U/l), mean (SD)§ | 90.8 (41.2) | 88 (67) |
| Intact PTH (pg/ml), mean (SD)§ | 48.9 (14.9) | 47.8 (14.3) |
| Beta-CTx, mean (SD)§ | 0.43 (0.3) | 0.62 (1.4) |
| Osteocalcin§ | 24.8 (9.0) | 16.4 (8.0) |
| Fractures after treatment initiation, n (%) | 1 (3.3) | 3 (10) |
§Mean (SD) or reference range for normal values: 35 (15) nmol/mmol for urine NTX/creatinine (premenopausal women); 0.321 (0.155) ng/ml for serum CTx; 7.3–22.4 g/l for bone-specific alkaline phosphatase; 8.4–10.3 mg/dl for albumin-adjusted calcium; and 10–65 pg/ml for iPTH.