Fourteen studies (n=13,815) were included in the review.
Osteoporosis.
One study reported an association between a height loss of more than 3 cm and low BMD (LR+ 3.2, 95% CI: 1.7, 6.1; LR- 0.4, 95% CI: 0.2, 0.7) in women with rheumatoid arthritis, whereas another study with a more diverse population showed no association between height loss and BMD.
Three studies showed that body weight was a better predictor of osteoporosis than other measures of body size. Two studies showed an association between BMD in women and a weight below 60 kg (LR+ 1.9, 95% CI: 1.8, 2.0; LR+ 3.6, 95% CI: 2.2, 55.8), while a third showed an association with a weight below 51 kg (LR+ 7.3, 95% CI: 5.0, 10.8).
One study reported an association between kyphosis and reduced BMD (LR+ 3.1, 95% CI: 1.8, 5.3). Grip strength below 60 lb was associated with a reduction in femur BMD (1 study; LR+ 1.3, 95% CI: 1.0, 1.6); grip strength below 20 kg was associated with a reduction in distal radius BMD (1 study; LR+ 1.5, 95% CI: 1.0, 2.1); and grip strength below 44 kPa was associated with a reduction in BMD of unspecified location (1 study; LR+ 1.7, 95%: CI 1.5, 1.9).
One study reported that a tooth count below 20 was associated with low BMD (LR+ 3.4, 95% CI: 1.4, 8.0). Another study showed no association between a tooth count below 22 and low BMD. There was no association between armspan-height difference or hand skin-fold thickness and BMD-diagnosed osteoporosis (1 study each).
Spinal fracture.
A kyphosis angle of greater than 43 degrees or a wall-occiput distance of greater than 7 cm in women was associated with thoracic fracture, while a kyphosis angle of less than 20 degrees or a wall-occiput distance of 0 cm reduced the chance of thoracic fracture (1 study). Another study, however, showed no association between wall-occiput distance and vertebral fracture.
A rib-pelvis distance of 2 fingerbreadths or less was associated with occult lumbar fractures (1 study; LR+ 3.8, 95% CI: 2.9, 5.1).
There was no association between armspan-height difference and vertebral fractures (2 studies).
Precision data available from individual studies were tabulated.