 Posted 16/11/2010 04:21:51
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Hello,
Thank you very much for a place to ask my question.
Recently I had a bone scan done on a GE-Lunar DXA. I was being certified to operate the DXA and it was fortunate that I was also given Full body, AP Spine, LVA, and Femur scans. One would not think that a young male would have low BMD but here are my scores:
Full Body: BMD 1.077g/cm2 T-Score -1.8 Z-Score -1.5
AP Spine: BMD of L1-L4 0.888g/cm2 T-Score -2.8 Z-Score -2.6 (L2 was -3.3 T-Score)
Femur: BMD of Total Left 0.867 T-Score -1.6 Z-Score -1.4
BMD of Right was similar to left
Here are my stats:
I am a 29 year old white male from the US. I am a runner (in training for my 6th marathon) and I regularly lift weights (2-3 times/week). I don’t smoke, I eat fairly healthy. I am 174cm and about 71Kg.
The only negative thing about my health is that I have been a heavy drinker for the past 10 years. (Up to about 6-8 12oz beer per day in some periods)
I don’t won’t be able to visit a doctor for another 2 months and I am worried that continued running (especially the marathon distance of 26.2 miles) will cause a vertebral compression fracture.
My question is this:
Weight bearing exercise is supposed to be very good for building bone, but with the low scores of my Lumbar vertebrae wouldn’t I be risking fracture by running? Or do you think I am ok to continue training and run the marathon (its on Dec. 5th)
p.s.
I have started to take 1200mg Calcium and about 2000u/day of Vit D-3. This should help me out until I can see a doctor in a few months.
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Posted 17/11/2010 15:10:05
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| Hi Thank you for your recent post regarding your scan results and the implications they may have for your marathon plans. The significance of low bone density in younger people is a complex issue which comes up quite frequently and although I am unable to provide specific advice I hope this will help with your decision making Generally, as you say, regular weight bearing exercise is essential for maintaining good bone health but this must be tempered with common sense in the presence of risk factors which may suggest an increased risk of fracture. As you know low bone density is a risk factor for fracture but there are other significant factors which must also be considered in assessing your absolute risk of breaking a bone at the present time. Positive factors such as your age, sex and physical fitness need to balanced against your low bone density and alcohol consumption. It is worth noting that the significance of low bone density in predicting fracture risk in an otherwise fit and healthy young man is not as clear as in older people in whom the correlation between low bone density and fracture risk is well established. I’m sorry I cannot tell you whether you should continue running at this high level but I hope I have provided some information to help you make a decision for yourself prior to seeing your doctor
Best wishesHelpline Nurses
National Osteoporosis Society
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Posted 25/01/2012 06:20:15
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Hi Adam,
I am 30 years old and just go diagnosed with osteoporosis. I had a bone scan because over the holidays I got a pain in my side which I thought was a pulled muscle. Turns out, it was a spontaneous rib fracture.
My T-scores are similar to yours where my spine has severe osteoporosis. I have never had any stress fractures (knock on wood). Have you?
I am signed up to run Boston and training was going really well up until now. I am just wondering how your running has been in the past 2 years and what the specialists told you. Did you have to quit or run less? Were you able to reverse your negative T scores?
Thanks,
Marathon woman and Boston hopeful
30 year old marathon runner
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