Relationship between diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis and fragility vertebral fracture: a prospective study in older men

Objective To analyse the risk of incident vertebral and non-vertebral fracture in men with DISH. Methods In 782 men ages 50–85 years, DISH was diagnosed using Resnick’s criteria. In men followed prospectively for 7.5 years, a radiographic incident vertebral fracture was defined by a decrease of ≥20% or ≥4mm in any vertebral height vs baseline. Self-reported incident non-vertebral fractures were confirmed by medical records. Results Men with DISH had higher BMD at the lumbar spine (P 0.9 g/cm2; ΔAUC = +0.189, P Conclusion DISH is associated with higher vertebral fracture risk, independently of other risk factors. Assessment of the intervertebral space dysfunction components may improve the vertebral fracture prediction in older men.