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We aimed to determine the contribution of high alcohol intake to fracture probability, calculated using a fracture-risk assessment tool (FRAX). Participants were 262 men (ages 60–90 y) in the Geelong Osteoporosis Study. Alcohol consumption was documented via a food frequency questionnaire; 46 (17.6%) consumed three or more units per day, fulfilling the criterion for high alcohol intake. Bone mineral density (BMD) was measured by dual energy x-ray absorptiometry. We determined FRAX probabilities (%) for major osteoporotic fracture (MOF) and hip fracture (HF), calculated with and without alcohol intake. Thresholds for high FRAX probabilities, calculated with or without BMD, were ≥20% for MOF and ≥3% for HF. Proportions of men with high HF-FRAX probabilities were consistently greater for drinkers compared with non-drinkers. For drinkers, paired differences showed that median MOF-FRAXwithoutBMD probabilities calculated with and without alcohol changed by −2.3, HF-FRAXwithoutBMD by −1.7, MOF-FRAXwithBMD by −1.4, and HF-FRAXwithBMD by −0.9 (all p < 0.001). We estimated that, should drinkers lower their alcohol consumption to <3 units/d, up to 66.7% of those at high risk for MOF and up to 41.0% at high risk for HF would reduce their FRAX probabilities to below the thresholds for high fracture risk. In the context of the Australian environment, these data describe the extent to which older men with high alcohol consumption are at increased risk for fracture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dynapenia is a key contributor to physical frailty. Cognitive impairment and dementia accompany frailty, yet links between skeletal muscle and neurocognition are poorly understood. We examined the cross-sectional relationship between lower limb muscle strength and global cognitive function. Participants were 127 women aged 51–87 years, from the Geelong Osteoporosis Study. Peak eccentric strength of the hip-flexors and hip abductors was determined using a hand-held dynamometer, and dynapenia identified as muscle strength t-scores < −1. Cognition was assessed using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), and MMSE scores below the median were rated as low. Associations between dynapenia and low cognition were examined using logistic regression models. Hip-flexor dynapenia was detected in 38 (71.7%) women with low cognition and 36 (48.7%) with good cognition (p = 0.009); for hip abductor dynapenia, the pattern was similar (21 (39.6%) vs. 9 (12.2%); p < 0.001). While the observed difference for hip-flexor strength was attenuated after adjusting for age and height (adjusted Odds Ratio (OR) 1.95, 95%CI 0.86–4.41), low cognition was nearly 4-fold more likely in association with hip abductor dynapenia (adjusted OR 3.76, 95%CI 1.44–9.83). No other confounders were identified. Our data suggest that low strength of the hip abductors and low cognition are associated and this could be a consequence of poor muscle function contributing to cognitive decline or vice versa. As muscle weakness is responsive to physical interventions, this warrants further investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]