Serum Chemerin Levels in relation to Osteoporosis and Bone Mineral Density: A Case-Control Study

BACKGROUND To evaluate serum chemerin levels in patients with osteoporosis and healthy controls and to investigate the relationship between serum chemerin levels and bone mineral density (BMD). METHODS An age- and gender-matched case-control study was conducted. Pearson's correlation test was performed to investigate the relationship between serum chemerin levels and BMD. RESULTS There were 93 patients included in the osteoporosis group and 93 matched controls. Serum chemerin level was significantly higher in patients with osteoporosis (87.27 ± 5.80 ng/mL) than patients in control (71.13 ± 5.12 ng/mL) (P < 0.01). There was a negative correlation between femoral bone mineral density and chemerin in both groups (R = -0.395, P < 0.01 in osteoporosis group; R = -0.680, P < 0.01 in control) and also a negative correlation between lumbar bone mineral density with chemerin in both groups (R = -0.306, P < 0.01 in osteoporosis group; R = -0.362, P < 0.01 in control). CONCLUSIONS Patients with osteoporosis presented a higher level of serum chemerin, which witnessed an inverse correlation with BMD. Further studies are needed to explore the role of chemerin in the pathophysiology of osteoporosis.