Quantitative ultrasound of the hand phalanges in a cohort of monozygotic twins: influence of genetic and environmental factors

ObjectiveOur objective was to evaluate the similarities and differences in bone mass and structure between pairs of monozygotic twins as measured by means of the quantitative ultrasound (QUS) technique.DesignA cohort of monozygotic twins was measured by QUS of the hand phalanges using the DBM sonic bone profiler (IGEA, Carpi, Italy). The parameters studied were amplitude-dependent speed of sound (AD-SoS), ultrasound bone profile index (UBPI), signal dynamics (SDy) and bone transmission time (BTT). Linear correlation coefficients, multivariate linear analysis and the ANOVA test were used to assess intrapair associations between variables and to determine which factors influence the intrapair differences in QUS variables.PatientsOne hundred and six pairs of monozygotic twins were enrolled in the study, 68 females and 38 males in the age range 5 to 71 years.ResultsSignificant intrapair correlations were obtained in the whole population and separately for males and females, regarding height ( r =0.98–0.99, p <0.0001), weight ( r =0.95–0.96, p <0.0001), AD-SoS ( r =0.90–0.92, p <0.0001), BTT ( r =0.94–0.95, p <0.0001) and other QUS parameters ( r >0.74, p <0.0001). Multivariate analysis revealed that intrapair differences between AD-SoS, SDy, UBPI and BTT are significantly influenced by age in the whole population and in the female population. Furthermore, the ANOVA test showed, for the female group, a significant increase in the intrapair differences in SDy and UBPI above 40 years.ConclusionsA relative contribution of genetic factors to skeletal status could be observed by phalangeal QUS measurement in monozygotic twins. A significant increase in the intrapair difference in QUS parameters with increasing age and onset of menopause also suggests the importance of environmental factors in the female twin population.