MRI-measured pelvic bone marrow adipose tissue is inversely related to DXA-measured bone mineral in younger and older adults

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Recent research has shown an inverse relationship between bone marrow adipose tissue (BMAT) and bone mineral density (BMD). There is a lack of evidence at the macro-imaging level to establish whether increased BMAT is a cause or effect of bone loss. This cross-sectional study compared the BMAT and BMD relationship between a younger adult group at or approaching peak bone mass (PBM; age 18.0–39.9 years) and an older group with potential bone loss (PoBL; age 40.0–88.0 years). SUBJECTS/METHODS: Pelvic BMAT was evaluated in 560 healthy men and women with T1-weighted whole-body magnetic resonance imaging. BMD was measured using whole-body dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. RESULTS: An inverse correlation was observed between pelvic BMAT and pelvic, total and spine BMD in the younger PBM group ( r =−0.419 to −0.461, P