Cortical bone loss and measurements of the second metacarpal bone. I. Comparisons between adult Guamanian Chamorros and American Caucasians.

The amount of radiographically detectable cortical bone, as determined by measurements of the second metacarpal, was evaluated in 42 male and 45 female Guamanian Chamorros and compared with the degree of bony demineralization in U.S. Caucasians participating in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study on Aging of the Gerontology Research Center. All Chamorros were individually matched to the Caucasian participants for age, sex, and menopause status. Chamorros of both sexes showed bilateral asymmetry in bone measurements and in the amount of cortical bone. Both Chamorro and Caucasian males had longer second metacarpals and more cortical bone than females. Caucasian males, however, had longer and larger second metacarpals than Chamorro males. Despite differences in the length and total width, Chamorro and Caucasian participants generally showed no significant differences in the amount of cortical bone or percent cortical area in the second metacarpal, suggesting that larger bones may not always indicate greater cortical mass. Although cross-sectional data suggested apparent age differences in the onset and rate of bone loss between Chamorros and Caucasians, the numbers of participants were too small to allow meaningful age-by-age statistical comparisons.