Osteoporosis is a condition characterised by a loss of
bone density, thereby causing bones to become fragile and fractured
spontaneously or due to minimum traumas.
SYMPTOMS
Unfortunately, no symptoms are displayed up until a
bone fracture has taken place. A height reduction over the course of a year along
with an increment in the curvature of the back can provide us with a clue that
osteoporosis is present.
The symptoms are:
- Vertebral compression
- Pain
- Micro fractures
- Important fractures in the vertebrae, wrists, thighs and hips
AGE OF ONSET
It can emerge in children however, it is most commonly
found in men and women adults over the age of fifty.
PREVENTIVE MEASURES
- Do physical exercise.
- It has been shown that physical exercise, especially walking, is an important bone generator, therefore making it a key protector against osteoporosis.
- No smoking or drinking alcohol.
- Maintain a healthy diet that is also rich in calcium.
DIAGNOSIS
There is not a blood test that diagnoses osteoporosis
and an X Ray will only do so in cases where the condition is in an advanced
stage.
The diagnosis can only be made with a machine that measures bone density called densitometer.
This diagnosis is essential for post-menopausal women, people over the age of fifty and people with a prior family history of osteoporosis.
TREATMENT
The treatments depend entirely on the stage in which
osteoporosis has been diagnosed.
These would be:
- Maintaining a healthy diet.
- Stop smoking and drinking alcohol.
- Walking everyday for an hour.
- Take Calcium and Vitamin D supplements.
- Use of hormonal treatments, especially for post-menopausal women.
