BONE MASS IN HIRSUTE WOMEN WITH ANDROGEN EXCESS

The spinal and femoral bone mass of 32 hirsute women with oligomenorrhoea and androgen excess was measured using dual photon absorptiometry and compared with the bone mass of 32 control women with regular menstrual cycles. Despite significantly lower oestradiol levels in the hirsute population there was no significant difference in the bone mass. Furthermore there was no significant difference in bone mass in five hirsute women with undetectable levels of oestradiol. It is concluded that androgen excess can maintain normal bone mass in the face of low or undetectable oestradiol levels.