LORENA HYSI1*, TEFTA REXHA2
1Agricultural University of Tirana, Albania
2University of Tirana, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Department of Biology, Bulevard “Zogu I, Tirana, Albania
*Corresponding author E-mail: lorena.hysi@hotmail.com
Abstract
The field of bone turnover markers has developed considerably in the past decade. Biochemical monitoring of bone metabolism depends upon measurement of enzymes and proteins released during bone formation and of degradation products produced during bone resorption. The aim of this study was to use osteocalcin as a marker of bone formation that allow a specific and sensitive assessment of the rate of bone formation of the skeleton and study the correlation between serum osteocalcin level with bone mineral density (BMD) and age in postmenopausal women. A total of 60 postmenopausal Albanian women participated in the study. Subjects were divided into two groups: postmenopausal normal women and postmenopausal osteoporosis women. All subjects completed a questionnaire on life style factors. Height and weight were measured. Bone density was scanned using Quantitative Ultrasound (QUS). Serum samples were collected and osteocalcin levels were measured by electrochemioluminiscence (ECL) using Elecsys 2010. The Pearson correlation test indicated a negative correlation between osteocalcin levels and BMD. Serum osteocalcin levels was positively correlated with age which showed increase serum osteocalcin levels with aging. We observed significantly higher levels of serum osteocalcin in postmenopausal women with problems of osteoporosis compared to postmenopausal normal women (P<0,05).
Keywords: Serum osteocalcin, postmenopausal women, osteoporosis, bone mineral density.
