eNewsletter - MAY 2011

Facts About Osteoporosis

Osteoporosis, or porous bone, is a condition that results when bones lose calcium and thickness. Because of this thinning of the bones, a person with osteoporosis is at increased risk for fractures (breaks). Most people are not aware they have osteoporosis until a fracture occurs.

Prevalence

Osteoporosis is a major public health threat for more than 28 million Americans, 80 percent of whom are women. In the United States today, 10 million individuals already have the disease and 18 million more have low bone mass, placing them at increased risk for osteoporosis.

Here are some facts other about osteoporosis:

Eighty percent of those affected by osteoporosis are women.
Eight million American women and 2 million men have osteoporosis, and millions more have low bone density.
One in two white women and one in eight white men over age 50 will have an osteoporosis-related fracture in their lifetimes.
Ten percent of African American women over age 50 have osteoporosis. An additional 30 percent have low bone density that puts them at risk of developing osteoporosis.
Although osteoporosis is often thought of as an older person's disease, it can strike at any age.
Osteoporosis is responsible for more than 1.5 million fractures annually, including about:
- 300,000 hip fractures
- 700,000 vertebral (spine) fractures
- 250,000 wrist fractures
- 300,000 fractures at other sites

Symptoms

Osteoporosis is often called the "silent disease" because bone loss occurs without symptoms. People might not know they have osteoporosis until their bones become so weak that a sudden strain, bump, or fall causes a fractures or a vertebra to collapse. Collapsed vertebrae might initially be felt or seen in the form of severe back pain, loss of height, or spinal deformities such as kyphosis or stooped posture.

Detection

A specialized test called a bone density test (dual energy X-ray absorptiometry [DXA]) can measure bone density in various sites of the body typically the spine and hip. A bone density test can:

Detect osteoporosis before a fractures occurs
Predict your chances of fracturing in the future
Determine your rate of bone loss and/or monitor the effects of treatment if the test is conducted at intervals of a year or more

Prevention

By about age 20, the average woman has acquired 98 percent of her skeletal mass. Building strong bone during childhood and adolescence can be the best defense against developing osteoporosis later. A comprehensive program that can help prevent osteoporosis includes:

A balanced diet rich in calcium and vitamin D
Weight-bearing exercise
A healthy lifestyle with no smoking and limited alcohol intake
Bone density testing and medicine when appropriate

Medicines

Although there is no cure for osteoporosis, there are several medications approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for postmenopausal women to either prevent and/or treat osteoporosis:

Bisphosphonates: alendronate, risedronate, ibandronate, zoledronic acid are approved for prevention and treatment.
Estrogen or hormone therapy is approved for prevention of osteoporosis.
Calcitonin is approved for the treatment of osteoporosis.
Raloxifene, a selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM), is approved for prevention and treatment of osteoporosis.
Teriparatide (PTH) is approved for osteoporosis treatment.
Treatments under investigation include other SERMs, strontium, and sodium fluoride.

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