RESUMO
BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Osteoporosis leads to high fracture risk and evidence suggests that genetic factors play an important role in this disease. The aim was to evaluate the association of two polymorphisms (-1997G/T, +1245G/T) in the collagen type1 alpha 1 gene (COL1A1) with fracture or with low bone mineral density (BMD) at the hip in postmenopausal Mexican women. METHODS: BMD was determined by bone densitometry and the risk factors were collected with a questionnaire. Genotyping was performed by real-time PCR. RESULTS: The polymorphisms were in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. The -1997G/+1245T haplotype showed, after adjustment for confounders, a fourfold increased risk of hip fracture [OR 4.32; p = 0.041 (95 % CI 1.07-17.43)]; while in the women with low BMD at the hip, the risk was increased threefold [OR 3.36; p = 0.022 (95 % CI 1.20-9.40)]. CONCLUSIONS: The results support the association of COL1A1 gene polymorphisms with fracture and with low BMD at the hip in Mexican population.