Correlative Study of Bone-related Biochemicals and Endocrine Changes in Perimenopausal Women in Enugu, Nigeria.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Perimenopause is a physiological occurrence in women, and is characterized by endocrine and biochemical changes. During perimenopause phase, many derangements or abnormal health conditions start developing as a result of hormonal changes. These derangements in health conditions and biochemical changes lead to higher incidence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) occurrence with or without bone involvement. There is a scarcity of information on MetS in Enugu, Southern Nigeria and there is no available data on the correlation of selected bone-related biochemicals with endocrine parameters and MetS in perimenopausal women from the region. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We consecutively sampled 200 apparently healthy women, and categorized them into 120 perimenopausal women (age (!) = 50years) and a second group of 80 women in premenopause (age (!) = 35years). Measurement of anthropometric indices like blood pressure, height, weight and waist circumference were taken. Fasting blood samples were collected for the estimation of endocrine parameters (estradiol (E2), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), and luteinizing hormone (LH)) using enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) technique. The lipid profile, fasting plasma glucose (FPG), uric acid, inorganic phosphate, calcium and alkaline phosphatase levels were determined using standard biochemical methods. The evaluation of MetS was carried out in the women using the three different criteria: World Health Organization (WHO), National Cholesterol Education Program- Adult Treatment Panel 111 (NCEP-ATP 111) and International Diabetes Federation (IDF). For statistical analysis, Student's t-test, Pearson correlation and Chi-square were used to compare categorical and continuous variables. RESULTS: Calcium was predominantly high in the three criteria (p<0.05). LH and FSH showed a positive correlation with FPG while E2 was negatively associated with FPG. Similarly, LH showed a positive association with inorganic phosphate while E2 was negatively associated with alkaline phosphatase (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Perimenopausal women are at higher risk of developing osteoporosis than premenopausal women. This emphasizes the need for timely diagnosis of osteoporosis in perimenopausal women.