Social and mental functioning in postmenopausal women with low bone mineral density

Introduction. Osteoporosis is a systemic, metabolic, progressive bone disease characterized by reduced bone mineral density leading to bone fragility and reduced quality of life. The objective of this study was to examine the quality of social and mental functioning in postmenopausal women with reduced mineral bone density. Material and Methods. This prospective cross-sectional study included 210 postmenopausal women aged ≥ 50 years, who were referred for osteodensitometry to the Special Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases Novi Sad, Serbia. The study was conducted in the period from February 24 to April 3, 2017. All women completed the Serbian version of the Quality of Life Questionnaire of the European Foundation for Osteoporosis (41). They all underwent bone mineral density measurement in two regions of interest, and the results were interpreted according to the current definition of osteoporosis. The participants' social and mental functioning was analyzed including the following variables: age, place of residence, educational attainment, employment, nutritional status, bone mineral density, and low-trauma fractures. Statistical processing and analyses were performed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences, version 20. Results. A statistically significant negative correlation was noted between social functioning and the T-score for the femoral neck (r = -0.438), hip (r = -0.412) and spine (r = -0.226), as well as mental functioning with the T-score for the femoral neck (r = -0.424), hip (r = -0.454) and spine (r = -0.319). Patients with a history of fractures had a poorer quality of social functioning (t = 2.17, p < 0.05). Conclusion. The examinees of older age, with poor socio-demographic status, reduced bone mineral density, history of low-trauma fractures presented with lower quality of social and mental functioning.