Study: High blood pressure may accelerate bone aging

By Alice Clifford via SWNS

High blood pressure may accelerate bone aging, according to a new study from Vanderbilt University, TN.

Researchers studied the bones of young mice with high blood pressure and found that despite their age, their bones resembled those of much older mice.

The findings showed they suffered from bone loss and osteoporosis-related bone damage.

Osteoporosis is a disease that weakens bones and makes them more susceptible to breaking.

Comparing the study to ourselves, the human age equivalent of the young mice was 20-30, while the older mice were 47-56.

Compared to the young mice with normal blood pressure, the mice with high blood pressure lost 24 percent of their bone volume and saw a reduction of 18 percent of bone thickness at the end of their long bones.

Their ability to withstand different types of force was also reduced by 34 percent.

Elizabeth Maria Hennen, a Ph.D. candidate in biomedical engineering at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, and lead author of the study said: “In these mice, being hypertensive (having high blood pressure) at a younger age essentially aged bones as if they were 15-25 human years older.”

Having weaker bones can lead to more frequent bone breaks.

Ms. Hennen said: "Failure force translates into weaker bones. In the spine, bone weakness can lead to vertebral fractures later in life."

The researchers found that the inflammation in the body caused by high blood pressure may be a reason why these mice developed osteoporosis.

Ms. Hennen said: “Bone marrow is where both new bone and new immune cells are produced.

"We suspect that more pro-inflammatory immune cells in the bone marrow may be leading to damage of the bone and making it weaker.”

Ms. Hennen believes that these findings may help further research into human bone health and lead to new approaches to prevent osteoporosis in early adulthood.

She added: "By understanding how hypertension contributes to osteoporosis, we may be able to reduce the risk of osteoporosis and better protect people later in life from having fragility fractures and a lower quality of life.”

These results were presented at the American Heart Association’s Hypertension Scientific Sessions 2022 conference in San Diego.