Childhood fractures may affect bone density later

Certain fractures in early childhood may have implications for a kid's long-term bone health, said a study.

The study by Mayo Clinic have found evidence that children and adolescents whose forearm fractures occurred due to mild trauma had lower bone strength compared to other children.

Lower bone strength may predispose children to fractures resulting from weakened bone (osteoporotic fracture) later in life, claimed the study published in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research.

"Our study highlights the need for clinicians to consider the level of trauma preceding the injury, when treating children and adolescents with fracture," said lead author Joshua Farr, a research fellow at Mayo Clinic in Rochester in Monroe County, New York.

"We can't say with certainty that these skeletal deficits will track into adulthood. But we think intervention in terms of diet and physical activity might be used to optimise bone strength," said Farr.

The Mayo study compared bone strength in children aged 8 to 15 with forearm fractures due to mild trauma.

Mild trauma is defined as a fall from a standing height while moderate trauma is defined as a fall from a relatively low height, such as from a bicycle.

The participants underwent a sophisticated version of CT known as high-resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HRpQCT) to assess bone strength and quality.

The researchers found that boys and girls with a mild-trauma distal forearm fracture had weaker bones.

Their bones were able to tolerate less stress before fracturing, and they had thinner cortical bone - the outer layer of bone tissue that carries out most of the functions of bone, the research showed.