Please can I have information on, including symptoms of, osteoporosis.

Answer

Osteoporosis is a term used for a number of different diseases which cause thinning of the bone. The most common form of osteoporosis is that seen in women after the menopause. It can also be found in Cushings's syndrome, diabetes, thyroid diseases, alcoholism, rheumatoid arthritis and many other disorders.

Symptoms as such, are not easy to describe. The usual 'symptom' is breaking a bone, such as a hip bone in a fall, which is relatively common in elderly postmenopausal women who are not on hormone replacement therapy. Other common sites of fractures are the vertebrae, wrist, humerus and tibia. Symptoms from a collapsed vertebra are back pain, usually sudden and severe, and deformity of the spine. Another 'symptom' is the so-called Dowager's Hump, caused by deformity of the spine due to a collapsed vertebra in the middle part of the back. This is often painless. There may also be loss of height. Generalised pain is not common.

Simple diagnosis is made by X-ray, where the decrease in bone density can be seen. Other more quantitative studies of bone density can actually predict the likelihood of fractures in the future.

Treatment of post menopausal osteoporosis is usually by hormone replacement therapy, which can influence bone mass even after osteoporosis has started. Calcium supplements and vitamin D supplements are being increasingly investigated and new formulations are proving to be of value.