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Home > Patient Resource Center > Women's Health Program > Osteoporosis

WOMEN'S HEALTH PROGRAM
Osteoporosis

What is Osteoporosis?
Are You at Risk?
About the "DEXA" Bone Density Test
Steps to Optimal Bone Health
Key Statistics
Helpful Links

What is Osteoporosis?

Osteoporosis is a debilitating disease in which bones become fragile and more likely to break. In most cases, it can be prevented and treated, but if steps are not taken, it progresses painfully until a bone breaks.

Often called the "silent disease", osteoporosis many times has no symptoms. It is responsible for almost as many deaths as breast cancer. This is an alarming statistic that, until recently, was not given the attention that it deserved. In 1999, the Surgeon General set forth guidelines for all of the doctors in the country for the screening of osteoporosis. Your doctor has been given these guidelines.

In the United States today, 10 million individuals already have osteoporosis while 34 million are at risk of developing the disease. Eighty percent of those with osteoporosis are women. Each year in the U.S., the disease leads to 1.5 million factures, most often of the hip, spine and wrist.

The American Medical Association recommends having a baseline bone density screening, or a DEXA test, beginning at age 50.

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Are You at Risk?

Several factors can increase your chances of developing osteoporosis:

• Gender - Women are more likely to develop osteoporosis than men due to thinner, lighter bones and the decrease in estrogen production that occurs during menopause.
• Age - The longer you live, the greater the likelihood of developing osteoporosis. Although all of us lose bone tissue as we age, the amount and rate of loss varies widely with each individual.
• Family History - Susceptibility to osteoporosis is due in part to heredity. If you have had a fracture as an adult or a parent has had a fracture, you are more likely to have lower bone mass than your peers.
• Ethnicity - Caucasian and Asian women are at highest risk; African American and Hispanic women are at lower but significant risk.
• Body Size - Low body weight (under 127 lbs) and a small-boned frame place you at increased risk.
• Lifestyle - A diet low in calcium, inadequate vitamin D, little or no exercise, current cigarette smoking, or excessive use of alcohol are all risk factors.

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About the "DEXA" Bone Density Test

The bone density test is one of the safest, most accurate ways to measure bone mineral density (BMD). DEXA (Dual Energy X-Ray Absorptiometry) is the most common and recommended type of bone density test, and is easy, quick and painless for the patient.

On the day of your test, you may eat and drink as usual. You may wear loose, comfortable clothing. You will not need to disrobe or change into a gown.

The test itself is very simple. You will lie on a cushioned bed with your feet elevated on a pillow, while a scanner arm passes over your thigh area and lower back.

Results of the DEXA test are commonly reported as a "T-score." The T-score is based on a scale that compares your bone density to that of an average young adult woman. That average is rated "0," and your T-score reflects how close to or far from the average your bone density is. The lower the T-score, the higher the risk of bone fracture.

Depending on your results, your doctor may recommend regular monitoring of your bone density, making some lifestyle changes, or possibly a medication if calcium supplements and exercise were not enough.

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Steps to Optimal Bone Health

There are a number of simple steps you can take to ensure optimal bone health:

• A calcium-rich diet
• Adequate vitamin D
• Appropriate exercise

Calcium is especially important for bone health, as it is needed for heart, muscles, and nerves to function properly and for blood to clot normally. If your daily calcium intake is low, calcium will be removed from the bones to perform these functions. Dairy products are a good source of calcium as well as protein, phosphorus, and other nutrients. The calcium in dairy products is easily absorbed by the body. Other calcium sources include some fruits, vegetables, grains, and fish. Calcium supplements are also available for those who are unable to consume enough calcium from food sources.

Vitamin D plays an important role in bone health. It allows calcium to leave the intestine and enter the bloodstream to be absorbed. Vitamin D is formed naturally in the body after 15 minutes of exposure to sunlight. Other sources of vitamin D are fortified dairy products, egg yolks, saltwater fish, and liver. Multivitamins containing vitamin D and supplements are available, but daily intake should not exceed 800 IU.

Exercise is an important part of any osteoporosis prevention or treatment program. Weight-bearing and resistance-training exercises have been shown to play an important role in helping to maintain bone mass, and therefore lower the risk of developing the disease. Examples of weight-bearing exercises, the most beneficial type of exercise, are walking, jogging, racquet sports, hiking, dancing, and stair climbing.

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Key Statistics

• 10 million individuals are estimated to already have the disease and almost 34 million more are estimated to have low bone mass, placing them at increased risk for osteoporosis-representing 55 percent of the people 50 years of age and older in the U.S.
• Of the 10 million Americans estimated to have osteoporosis, 8 million are women and 2 million are men
• One in two women and one in four men over age 50 will have an osteoporosis-related fracture in their remaining lifetime.
• Osteoporosis is responsible for more than 1.5 million fractures annually.
• A woman's risk of hip fracture is equal to her combined risk of breast, uterine and ovarian cancer.
• At six months after a hip fracture, only 15% of hip fracture patients can walk across a room unaided.

  Source: National Osteoporosis Foundation.

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Helpful Links

National Osteoporosis Foundation	www.nof.org
NIH Osteoporosis & Related Bone Disease Center	www.osteo.org

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