The Observation of Bone Histomorphometry of Senile Vertebra

The pathologic section of vertebra in 114 cases was resported. They were divided into four. groups: （1） Youth control group; （2） Senile control group; （3） Senile with chronic disease; （4） Seriiles with disturbed calcium metabolism. Under olympus microscope, we used the ocular square grid and stage micrometer to measure various bone structures. The results showed that trabecular bone cross-sectional area （mm²）. mean trabecular width （μ）, mean cortex thickness of bone and marrow cell （%） in group Ⅲ and Ⅳ were smaller than those of group Ⅱ （P＜0.01）. The index of group Ⅱ was smaller than that of group Ⅰ （P＜0.05 or 0.01）. There were no obvious difference of mean trabecular width and mean cortex thickness of bone between men and women in group Ⅲ and Ⅳ. But group Ⅳ had more micro-fractures than that of Ⅱ and Ⅲ group（P＜0.01）. The feature of senile osteoporosis, clinical significance of bone histomorphometry and the pathogenic basis of these types of senile fracture were also discussed.