Publication:

Prevalence and risk factors of bone disease in patients with chronic pancreatitis: a cross sectional study

Background Osteopenia and osteoporosis is a highly prevalent condition and presents a tremendous public health burden. The association of bone disease has been recognized in several diseases of the git, resulting in established guidelines for screening in patients with malabsorptive disorders such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and celiac disease.  Increasingly, the risk of bone disease has been recognized in patients with chronic pancreatitis, who share similar risk factors as patients with other gastrointestinal disorders.

Methods This single-centre study was carried out in Kilpauk medical college. This study population consisted of 47 patients who were image confirmed cases of chronic pancreatitis. History of smoking, alcohol use was taken, body mass index, fecal elastase was measured. Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry scan was used to examine bone mineral density (BMD) for the lumbar spine and bilateral femoral neck.

Results Of the 47 patients, 19 patients were chronic smokers and 28 patients had history of significant alcohol use. The prevalence of osteoporosis in patient group was 29.8% in patients with CP compared to Indian prevalence of 18.3% in previous studies. The prevalence of osteopenia was 48.9% in patients with CP compared to Indian prevalence of 49.9% in previous studies.

Conclusions Bone disease in CP can be attributed to several risk factors which act synergistically in propagating abnormal bone metabolism. Osteoporosis and osteopenia are underappreciated sources of morbidity in patients with chronic pancreatitis. Bone health management guidelines are urgently required in patients with chronic pancreatitis.