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OSTEOPOROSIS & METABOLIC DISORDERS

Metabolic bone diseases are disorders of bone strength usually caused by abnormalities of minerals (such as calcium or phosphorus), vitamin D, bone mass or bone structure, with osteoporosis being the most common.

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​Osteoporosis causes bones to become weak and brittle — so brittle that a fall or even mild stresses such as bending over or coughing can cause a fracture. Osteoporosis-related fractures most commonly occur in the hip, wrist or spine. Bone is living tissue that is constantly being broken down and replaced.

SYMPTOMS

  • Back pain, caused by a fractured or collapsed vertebra.

  • Loss of height over time

  • A stooped posture

  • A bone that breaks much more easily than expected

  • Receding gums

  • Weak and brittle nails

What are osteoporosis causes and risk factors?

  • Thin and small body frame

  • Family history of osteoporosis

  • Personal history of fracture as an adult.

  • Cigarette smoking

  • Excessive alcohol consumption

  • Lack of exercise

  • Diet low in calcium

  • Poor nutrition and poor general health, especially associated with chronic inflammation or bowel disease

  • Low estrogen levels in women (which may occur in menopause or with early surgical removal of both ovaries)

  • Low testosterone levels in men (hypogonadism)

  • Chemotherapy that can cause early menopause due to its toxic effects on the ovaries

  • Amenorrhea (loss of the menstrual period) in young women is associated with low estrogen and osteoporosis; amenorrhea can occur in women who undergo extremely vigorous exercise training and in women with very low body fat (for example, women with anorexia nervosa)

  • Chronic inflammation, due to chronic inflammatory arthritis or diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis or liver diseases

  • Immobility, such as after a stroke, or from any condition that interferes with walking

  • Hyperthyroidism, a condition wherein too much thyroid hormone is produced by the thyroid gland (as in Grave's disease) or is ingested as thyroid hormone medication

  • Lack of vitamins

  • Certain medications can cause osteoporosis.

  • Inherited disorders of connective tissue, including osteogenesis imperfecta, homocystinuria, osteoporosis-pseudoglioma syndrome, and skin diseases, such as Marfan syndrome and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome

What are the consequences of osteoporosis?

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Osteoporotic bone fractures are responsible for considerable pain, decreased quality of life, lost workdays, and disability. Up to 30% of patients suffering a hip fracture will require long-term nursing-home care. Elderly patients can develop pneumonia and blood clots in the leg veins that can travel to the lungs (pulmonary embolism) due to prolonged bed rest after the hip fracture. Osteoporosis has even been linked with an increased risk of death. Some 20% of women with a hip fracture will die in the subsequent year as an indirect result of the fracture. In addition, once a person has experienced a spine fracture due to osteoporosis, he or she is at very high risk of suffering another such fracture in the near future (next few years). About 20% of postmenopausal women who experience a vertebral fracture will suffer a new vertebral fracture of bone in the following year.

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