Tulane University Researchers Link Cardiovascular Risk Scores to Significant Increase in Bone Fracture Rates Among Postmenopausal Women

New Tulane study finds high cardiovascular risk increases hip fracture probability by 93%. Learn how the AHA PREVENT score helps predict bone health in 2026.

By: AXL Media

Published: Mar 28, 2026, 4:13 AM EDT

Source: Information for this report was sourced from Tulane University

The Biological Intersection of Bone and Heart Health

Medical science is increasingly uncovering the physiological threads that tie cardiovascular stability to skeletal integrity in aging populations. According to the research conducted at Tulane University, postmenopausal women with a high risk of heart disease are significantly more likely to suffer debilitating bone injuries. The study, which analyzed data from the Women's Health Initiative, indicates that the decline in estrogen levels following menopause acts as a dual catalyst, simultaneously weakening the arterial walls and accelerating the loss of bone mineral density. This shared hormonal trajectory suggests that these two traditionally separate fields of medicine may actually be symptoms of a unified aging process.

Quantifying the Risk Through the PREVENT Framework

To establish these findings, investigators utilized the American Heart Association’s PREVENT score, a 10 year cardiovascular risk assessment tool developed in 2024. Women categorized in the high risk group for heart disease exhibited a staggering 93 percent higher risk of hip fractures compared to those in the low risk category. Even those with intermediate heart risk showed a 33 percent increase in fracture probability. According to lead author Rafeka Hossain, the magnitude of this association, particularly regarding hip injuries, suggests that a patient’s cardiovascular profile is one of the most potent non-skeletal predictors of future bone trauma available to modern clinicians.

Age as a Critical Variable in Fracture Correlation

One of the more unexpected revelations from the Tulane data is that the link between heart health and bone fragility is most pronounced in younger postmenopausal cohorts. Specifically, the association remained stronger for women under the age of 65 than for those 65 and older. This suggests that cardiovascular distress may prematurely age the skeletal system, leading to "weakened bone" fractures in the spine, forearm, and shoulder much earlier than standard geriatric benchmarks would predict. This shift in timing reinforces the necessity of early screening for women who may not yet meet the traditional age requirements for bone density testing.