[Postmenopausal osteoporosis: clinical characteristics in patients first vertebral crush fracture. Results of the GRIO National Multicenter Survey. Groupe de Recherche et d'Information sur les Osteoporoses].

This national multicenter study by the French Task Force on Osteoporosis Research and Information (Groupe de Recherche et d'Information sur l'Ostéoporose GRIO) was carried out to define clinical features in women presenting with a first osteoporosis-related vertebral crush fracture. Seventy-four patients with a less than three-month history of back pain due to a first vertebral fracture documented on the basis of stringent roentgenographic criteria, were compared to 74 normal age-matched female controls. Mean age at first vertebral fracture was 67 +/- 7 years. Cases and controls filled out a 78-item questionnaire on morphology, reproductive function, environmental factors, and previous fractures. The circumstances of onset and site of the vertebral fracture were recorded. Both groups were comparable in terms of age, body weight, hair color and eye color, whereas mean height was smaller by 2 cm in cases (p < 0.02). Among data on reproductive function, the only difference was a younger age at last menses among cases (47.7 +/- 5.7 versus 49.8 +/- 4.8 years); number of pregnancies and duration of breast-feeding were comparable in cases and controls. Environmental factors (smoking, alcohol use, physical activity, dietary calcium) were similar in the two groups. Cases were more likely than controls to report a history of appendicular fractures and/or a positive family history for vertebral osteoporosis. This study in French women suggests that the first osteoporotic vertebral fracture occurs approximately 20 years after cessation of menses and that risk factors include earlier age at last menses, a history of fracture, and a family history of vertebral osteoporosis.