%0 Journal Article %A Edmund K. Li %A Tracy Y. Zhu %A Lai-Shan Tam %A Vivian W. Hung %A James F. Griffith %A Tena K. Li %A Martin Li %A Kong Chiu Wong %A Ping Chung Leung %A Anthony W. Kwok %A Ling Qin %T Bone Microarchitecture Assessment by High-Resolution Peripheral Quantitative Computed Tomography in Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Taking Corticosteroids %D 2010 %R 10.3899/jrheum.091231 %J The Journal of Rheumatology %P jrheum.091231 %X Objective We assessed the relationship between vertebral fracture and bone microarchitecture in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) on chronic corticosteroid therapy using high-resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HR-pQCT). Methods Fifty-nine Chinese women with SLE taking corticosteroid were selected to participate in a cross-sectional study. Vertebral fracture was confirmed semiquantitatively by lateral radiographs of the thoracic and lumbar spine. Density and microarchitecture at the distal radius were measured with HR-pQCT. Areal bone mineral density (aBMD) at hip and lumbar spine was measured by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA). Results Twelve patients had vertebral fractures. The aBMD of spine or hip did not differ between those with and without vertebral fractures. Measures by HR-pQCT revealed that patients with vertebral fractures had significantly lower level of average bone density (p = 0.007), cortical bone density (p = 0.029), trabecular bone density (p = 0.024), trabecular bone volume to tissue volume (p = 0.023), and trabecular thickness (p = 0.011) than those without vertebral fractures. Independent explanatory variables associated with higher risk of vertebral fractures were older age (p = 0.013) and lower average cortical bone density (p = 0.029). Conclusion Vertebral fracture in patients with SLE on chronic corticosteroid treatment was associated with alterations of bone density and microarchitectures measured by HR-pQCT and DEXA. However, alterations were more pronounced in measurements by HR-pQCT. Low cortical bone density and old age were significant predictors of vertebral fracture risk. %U https://www.jrheum.org/content/jrheum/early/2010/05/12/jrheum.091231.full.pdf