Does Hypogonadism Contribute to the Occurrence of a Minimal Trauma Hip Fracture in Elderly Men?

Abstract

The risk of MTHF in hypogonadal elderly men was investigated with a case-control model. Cases and controls were selected from males age 65 years and older residing in the 120-bed McGuire Veterans Affairs Medical Center Nursing Home Care Unit over a 5-day interval. Historical data and serum free testosterone (fTe) were available on 17 subjects with MTHF and 61 controls. When groups were compared for differences in age, race, alcohol abuse, cigarette abuse, and diseases or drugs that may be associated with MTHF, only race was significantly different. Although 25.6% of residents were black, 100% of MTHF subjects were white (P = 0.004). Hypogonadism was defined as a random fTe less than 9 pg/mL (normal 9 to 46 pg/mL) and was found in 21 subjects (26.9%). Of cases with a MTHF, 58.8% were hypogonadal compared with only 18.0% of controls. Utilizing logistic regression, a highly significant association was found between hypogonadism and MTHF (P = 0.008), and using the odds ratio, subjects with hypogonadism were 6.5 times more likely to have a MTHF (95% CI 2.0 to 20.6). To adjust for race, the odds ratio was repeated excluding black subjects, and the results remained highly significant (4.6, 95% CI 1.3 to 16.2). We conclude that hypogonadal elderly white men may be at increased risk for MTHF.