Low BMD is less predictive than reported falls for future limb fractures in women across Europe: results from the European Prospective Osteoporosis Study

We conclude that BMD alone cannot be validly used to discriminate between the risk of upper limb fractures across populations without taking account of population-specific variations in fall risk and other factors. These variations might reflect shared environmental or possibly genetic factors that contribute quite substantially to the risk of upper limb fractures in women.