[Dietary calcium and the prevalence of spinal deformities in a sample of the elderly population].

The aim of the study was to determine the role of calcium intake through nutritional consumption of milk and other milk products currently and in three time periods during life (until 25 years, 25-50 years and 50 years and over) and to relate the results to finding of vertebral deformities in an unselected sample of population of Zagreb (Croatia), aged 50 years and above. Each of 425 recruited individuals (269 women and 156 men) completed interviewer administered questionnaire and had lateral thoracolumbar radiography performed according to a standard protocol. The questions related to number of days in which each subject consumed milk and its products in the last week, and milk consumption in three life-periods. The morphometric measurements of vertebral height were used to determine the occurrence of vertebral deformity according to the method described by McCloskey et al. Adding numbers of days in which each subjects in the last week consumed milk and its products the score ranging from 0-28 was obtained. Between two groups of subjects (group I = score 0-10 and group II = score 11 and over), there was no difference by age, but there was by sex, women being those with greater current consumption of milk products. There was an increased risk of finding vertebral deformity in women appertaining to group I (OR = 3.10, 95% CI = 1.20-7.97), but not for men (OR = 0.93, 95% CI = 0.37-2.35), nor for both sexes (OR = 1.89, 95% CI = 0.99-3.63). There was a statistically significant difference in frequency of drinking milk in period 25-50 years of life, women being again more frequent consumers, but not in other periods of life. There was no correlation in frequency of milk consumption and prevalence of vertebral deformity in any of the periods of life, separately for men and women and taken together. To estimate milk consumption throughout the whole life we added the figures for all three periods of life, getting the score ranging from 3-12. The subjects were divided into two groups, and no increased risk of vertebral deformity was found in those who had been drinking less milk (OR = 1.43, 95% CI = 0.77-2.66). In our study women with currently less dietary calcium intake have greater risk for vertebral deformities. No association was found between frequency of milk consumption throughout the life and prevalence of vertebral deformities.