What is osteoporosis?

Osteoporosis is a disease of porous bones which tend to fracture easily

What are the symptoms of osteoporosis?

Osteoporosis can be present without any symptoms, patient may not be aware of osteoporosis until they suffer from a fracture

What are the consequences of osteoporosis?

Osteoporosis is responsible for considerable pain, decrease in the quality of life and disability, up to 30% of the patients suffer from a hip fracture, and osteoporosis has been also linked to increased risk of death

What are the risk factors for osteoporosis?

Females in the older age group
Thin and small body frame
Family history
Lack of exercises
Diet low in calcium
Cigarette smoking
Malabsorption syndrome
Chronic inflammation due to diseases like rhematoid arthritis
Hyperthyroidism
Hyperparathyroidism
Long term use of blood thinners like heparin and anticonvulsants like phenytoin
Patients taking steroids for other aliments like skin problems or asthma

How is osteoporosis diagnosed?

X-rays can detect osteoporosis as the bone appears thinner than normal, unfortunately by the time x-rays detect osteoporosis at least 30% of bone is lost, also x-rays are not accurate indicators of bone density ,DEXA-is the investigation of choice, the test takes about 15 min,exposes the patient to very little radiation and is quite precise, the bone density of the patient is compared with average bone density of same sex and race this is referred to as the Tscoreand is expressed as standard deviation from the benchmark

Osteoporosis-Tscore below -2.5
Osteopenia-Tscore between -1 and -2.5

What is the incidence of osteoporosis?

One in three women will develop a fracture due to osteoporosis in their lifetime , and one in five men will develop a fracture due to osteoporosis

When should one get DEXA done?

After the age of 50 for screening purpose once in two years Once diagnosed with osteoporosis yearly dexa will help us determine the response to treatment and the need to change drugs
If ones parents are diagnosed with osteoporosis the children above 45 years of age should consider screening
If one has undergone a hysterectomy (uterus removal)
If an adult develops a fracture

What are the common fractures associated with osteoporosis?

Hip
Wrist
Shoulder
Spine

What can one do to prevent osteoporosis?

Eat a balanced diet
Exercise regularly
Take adequate amount of calcium and vit D

What are the treatment options for osteoporosis?

Based on the level of osteoporosis there are 2 basic options one are a group of drugs which maintain your bone mass and prevent you from detiorating these are antiresorptive drugs which can be taken orally once a month or in people who have acidity can be injected once a year, the other drug teriparatide is an anabolic drug which builds bone and hence can improve your bone mass this has to be injected daily

Common fracture associated with osteoporosis

Shoulder fracture

This was a 68 year old lady who developd a 3 part fracture of the shoulder due to a trivial fall at home

                                          She was operated with a mini inciscion technique these are the x-rays

Another type of shoulder fracture

This was a 82 year old lady who developed a 4 part fracture of the rt shoulder due to a trivial fall at home

                                                                    Four part fracture                                                 Shoulder Replacement

Wrist fracture

This was a 65 year old lady who developed a fracture of the wrist

                          She was operated using a mini inciscion technique                                         wiring done

Another type of wrist fracture

This was a 78 year old who developed this bad fracture of the wrist

                                                                                                                                               Wrist plating done

Hip fracture

This was a 82 year old lady who developed a bad fracture of hip due to fall in the bathroom

                                                                       X-ray before surgery                                           X-ray after Surgery

Another type of hip fracture

                                                                     X-ray before surgery                                                 X-ray after Surgery

Humerus fracture

this was a 80 year old patient with osteoporosis with poor heart function who broke her arm

                                                                       X-ray before surgery                                                 X-ray after Surgery

Ankle fracture

This was a 92 hear old patient who developed a fracture of his ankle due to a fall on the footpath

                                                                   X-ray before surgery                                                 X-ray after Surgery

Bad elbow fracture(ty fracture)

this was a 85 year old lady who devloped a nasty fracture of the elbow due to fall in the house

                                                                   X-ray before surgery                                                 X-ray after Surgery