PLENARY SESSION: Impact of Obesity Beyond Diabetes
Obesity and Bone
Claudia Gagnon, MD, FRCP(C)
Endocrinologist
CHU de Québec
Associate Professor, Department of Medicine
Université Laval
Clinician-researcher
CHU de Québec Research Centre and at Québec Heart and Lung Institute Research Centre in Québec City
Dr. Gagnon is an endocrinologist at CHU de Québec, an Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine at Université Laval, and a clinician-researcher at CHU de Québec Research Centre and at Québec Heart and Lung Institute Research Centre in Québec City. After completing residency training at Université de Sherbrooke, she undertook a 3-year fellowship in metabolic bone diseases and phosphocalcic metabolism in Melbourne, Australia.
Her research, funded by Diabetes Canada, Diabète Québec and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, focuses on the impact of obesity, diabetes and bariatric surgery on bone health. Her publications have been cited >2,700 times and are part of the 2021 ASMBS bone guidelines. She received several prizes including the 2019 Jean-Davignon young investigator award from the Cardiometabolic, diabetes and obesity FRQ-S network, and a New Investigator Award at the International Symposium on the Nutritional Aspects of Osteoporosis in 2015. She is the Vice-Chair of the Scientific Advisory Council of Osteoporosis Canada.
Presentation Overview:
It is widely thought that obesity is protective against fractures. But do people with obesity really have bigger and stronger bones? Well, it is a complex question. While it is true that people with obesity generally have higher bone mass, it is not enough to protect them against fractures at all skeletal sites. Fracture risk in obesity varies by skeletal site and depending on the definition of obesity (waist circumference or BMI). Factors affecting fracture risk in people with obesity are not completely elucidated but may include the presence of comorbidities such as type 2 diabetes and falls risk. Several questions remain to be answered including the pathophysiology of bone fragility in obesity, the identification of people at higher risk of fracture in clinical practice, and the best way to prevent fractures in people with obesity.