Bergink AP, et al. - Researchers analyzed 4154 subjects to assess the longitudinal association between bone mineral density (BMD) and the incidence as well as progression of knee, hip, and hand osteoarthritis (OA), and also to explore the relationship between prevalent vertebral and nonvertebral fractures and the incidence and progression of OA in elderly people in the Rotterdam Study. They observed that candidates in the highest quartile of femoral neck BMD had an elevated risk of incident radiographic knee OA (ROA), and an increased risk of incident hip ROA as compared to the lowest quartile. They found no association of prevalent vertebral and nonvertebral fractures with an incline in the incidence or progression of knee or hip ROA. They concluded high femoral neck BMD as a prognostic risk factor for developing knee and hip ROA whereas vertebral fractures were considered a risk factor for incident hand ROA.