The effect of ethanol on bone mineral.

Chronic alcoholics frequently have osteopenia. This usually leads to an increase in long bone fractures. The exact cause of these changes is unknown. They could be caused by a change in the calcium metabolism or a change in the organic phase of bone. To elucidate the exact mechanism by which these changes occur, the following study was done. Forty-six Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into four groups. Two groups received alcohol, and two groups served as control. One set of each group received a fracture to the leg in order to study any change that might occur in the organic phase of bone. Our findings in these animals demonstrated that alcohol causes osteopenia due to a change in calcium metabolism and does not appear to effect the organic phase of bone.