Osteoporosis Symptoms

Statistics of People Affected by Osteoporosis

Osteoporosis is known as a “silent thief of bones”. Osteoporosis starts at the age of 30 and gradually it keeps reducing the bone mass. To avoid osteoporosis, it is very important that in early years, balanced diet having enough calcium and vitamin D is taken. As the age increases the formation of new bones reduce and osteoporosis occurs. By the time people come to know about their new medical condition – osteoporosis, it is already too late. When the symptoms of osteoporosis start occurring, nothing much can be done. This is because the symptoms of osteoporosis occur at a very later stage when the skeleton becomes too brittle and fragile. The only symptom is bone fractures at mild stress. Some statistical figures on osteoporosis are presented here on the bases of various surveys conducted by WHO and other organizations.

According to WHO, osteoporosis is the most common metabolic bone disease in developed countries. In United States alone, there are over 10 million people, who are already suffering from osteoporosis, and about 18 million people have started loosing bone mass and are more likely to develop osteoporosis. About 1 ½ million fractures in a year are caused due to osteoporosis. Among all the affected people 80% patients are females. Every second woman and one out of eight men suffer from fractures after the age of 50. The ratio of men and women suffering from osteoporosis is greatly different. This is because men have greater bone mass as compared to women.

Statistics of Osteoporosis Affected People Based on Racial Difference

The risk of Osteoporosis increases with age. After the age of 50 most people are affected by it. Osteoporosis is most common among Caucasian people. Asians are second most commonly affected and African-American are comparatively less affected races to suffer from osteoporosis. One out of every two elderly Caucasian woman as compared to one out of total 40 elderly Caucasian men of same age suffer from osteoporosis. According to an estimate, 54% postmenopausal white women suffer from osteoporosis.

Asians are second most affected people because of their low height and thin body structure. Vertebral fractures are more common in Asian women as compared to white women. It has been projected that by the year 2050, 50% of hip fractures will occur in Asia only. The African-American women are at lower risk of osteoporosis. Only 5% to 6% African-American women are at risk.

According to a study conducted by National Osteoporosis Foundation, USA, by the year 2010 about 12 million people above the age of 50 may get affected by osteoporosis in the country. Another 40 million people are expected to loose bone mass and by the year 2020 these figures may raise to 14 million and 47 million respectively.

The consequences of osteoporosis can be significantly traumatic because the people suffering from osteoporosis may get affected financially, physically, and psychologically. The fractures caused due to osteoporosis affect some individuals immensely by leaving them disable for their entire life. Women in their 70s and 80s are more prone to hip and wrist fractures. Some times these old age fractures are so traumatic that patients prefer death to a hip fracture.

Factors Contributing to Osteoporosis

Osteoporosis has affected many people throughout the world. Over 28 million people in America alone are affected by osteoporosis. To fight with osteoporosis it is important to know the causes of osteoporosis. Although, it is not essentially a women’s disease, 85% of women are the victim of osteoporosis.

Scientists have found out that the bones in our body keep regenerating.
The old bones are destroyed are subsequently replaced by the new bones. The replacement of bones takes eight months to complete. The process of bones regeneration is also called remodeling of bones. The rate of regeneration of bones is quite high in the young age but after the age of 35, the rate of regeneration of new bones slows down. The overall loss of density and strength in bones subsequently causes osteoporosis.

What are the risk Factors Contributing to Osteoporosis?

Usually, no single factor is attributed as the cause of osteoporosis. The various bone depleting factors are said to add upon one another and cause osteoporosis.
The bone loss in men and women is accelerated as they age. Osteoporosis can also be an outcome of some other disease like eating disorders.

The numerous factors that may cause osteoporosis are discussed below:

• Lack of exercise: Exercise helps to maintain good bone regeneration rate.
• Aging:
  The bone replacement rate also reduces with aging. Hence, the basic strength of the skeleton diminishes.
• Genetics:
  If either parent has osteoporosis then the siblings are also prone to suffer from osteoporosis.
• Menopause:
  There is decrease in estrogen production in women during menopause. The estrogen deficiency increases the bone loss in women during menopause. This makes women more vulnerable to osteoporosis.
• Excess phosphorous intake:
  The excess of phosphorus in body is also responsible for causing osteoporosis. The body has to draw calcium in suitable proportions to balance the phosphorus. Soda forms the main source of phosphorus intake.
• Alcohol consumption:
  Absorption of calcium is hindered by excess alcohol consumption.
• Smoking:
  Smoking also contributes to the causes of osteoporosis.
• Excessive salt and sugar:
  Intake of excess salt and sugar is also harmful because both of them are responsible for leaching out calcium from bones into the urine.
• Birth control pills:
  Birth control pills are also sometimes responsible for osteoporosis as they reduce the folic acid content in the body.
• Vitamin D deficiency:
  Lack of vitamin D also weakens your bones. You must expose yourself to sunlight to increase its intake.
• Excessive fats:
  Excess fat consumption is also responsible to cause osteoporosis.

Certain medications are also responsible for osteoporosis:

• Glucocorticoids:
  These may reduce your bone mass if you consume them for a long period of time.
• Corticosteroids:
  These are a form of steroids use to treat certain diseases. The Corticosteroids may cause osteoporosis.
• Gonadotropin releasing hormone:
  This hormone is used to treat many medical conditions. But women taking this treatment may suffer from low estrogen level, resulting in osteoporosis.
• Aluminum-containing antacids:
  These may also lead to osteoporosis.
• Chemotherapy:
  This is a treatment given to cancer patients but this treatment can leads to osteoporosis.

Apart from these, various other medicines can also cause osteoporosis. Therefore before taking any treatment, you must consult your doctor because every medication has its side effects.
Various drug interactions with other drugs or medications may also be responsible the cause of osteoporosis.

Risk Factors for Osteoporosis

Age is the most common risk factor associated with primary osteoporosis. As people grow old, the hormone levels decrease. In women, the estrogen level decreases and in men, testosterone level decreases, affecting the BMD of bones. In women estrogen is responsible for maintaining the bones. It prevents bones from breaking by keeping them strong and flexible whereas in men, testosterone is responsible for the same function.

Gender can be considered as another risk factor for osteoporosis. Females are mostly affected by osteoporosis after menopause when there is a sharp decline in the estrogen levels. Women are prone to osteoporosis twice as much as men. In a life time where men lose only 20% to 33% of BMD, women lose 30% to 50% BMD. In women the loss of BMD can be caused due to a surgery or any other reasons. For example if a woman has gone through a medical procedure of ovary removal or when they start their menstrual cycle late and the menopause occurs early.

Race is another risk factor for primary osteoporosis. Caucasian and Asian women are more prone to the risk of osteoporosis and black people are less likely to get osteoporosis. This may be because black people are much stronger and have dense bones than people of other races.

Body structure can also be considered a risk factor for osteoporosis. People with small bones and thin body are more prone to osteoporosis. This may be because the bones bear the entire weight of the body. In heavy weight people the bones are stressed and forced to form more bones where as in light weight people this is not required and thus bones are not forcefully formed. The heavy weight people have more fat, which forms more estrogen unlike thin people who do not have extra body fat and thus low estrogen level.

Malnutrition and inactive lifestyle are other two factors, which can cause osteoporosis. Bones are formed in response to activities that are performed by bones. If bones are inactive for long time there is no need for the formation of bones. This may cause osteoporosis. Another reason can be unhealthy eating habits and malnutrition. The deficiency of Vitamin D and calcium can cause osteoporosis.

Risk Factors Associated with Secondary Osteoporosis

Secondary osteoporosis is mainly related to the diseases. People having gastrointestinal disorder, heart disease, genetic disorders, hypogonadal states, and endocrine disorders are more prone to secondary osteoporosis. It can also be caused due to regular excessive intake of alcohol, liver diseases, or epilepsy.

The secondary osteoporosis may be cause due to the deficiency of a hormone called parathyroid. In a medical condition called Hyperparathyroidism, the body either do not produce enough parathyroid or does not recognize this hormone and cause osteoporosis. In another disease called hyperthyroidism the thyroid gland produces excessive thyroid hormone resulting in the increase of bone remodeling process and then eventually creating a loss in bone density.

The diabetic patients are also prone to secondary osteoporosis because they tend to loose more calcium in urine. The other factors for secondary osteoporosis may be a condition where body does not absorb enough calcium from food. This may be because of inflammatory bowel disease.

New Methods to Managing Gouty Arthritis

Gоut is just a cоmmоn reasоn fоr arthritis affecting оver 8 milliоn Americans.
There seems tо be a grоwing incidence оf the cоnditiоn in wоmen, even thоugh it affects males mоre than wоmen.
The оccurrence оver all seems tо be grоwing as a cоnsequence оf the epidemic оf оbesity, hypertensiоn, diabetes, and even elevated lipids, all оf which are cоnnected with gоut.Gоut, in 90 percent оf cases, is brоught оn by the inability оf the kidneys tо be rid оf urate. In the оther 10 percent, there’s an оver-prоductiоn оf urate.

Animals оther than humans dо nоt get gоut simply because they have a chemical called uricase which fails urate dоwn and even allоws yоur pet tо expel it.
Peоple, оn anоther hand, lack this enzyme and even cоnsequently are nоt able tо expel urate [uric acid] accоrdingly. This results in accumulatiоn оf uric acid crystals in the bоnes and even оther wооd systems.Gоut оn average dоes оccur in three phases.
The very first phase is what’s called ‘asymptоmatic hyperuricemia.’

Asymptоmatic hyperuricemia is seen as a raise blооd uric acid levels withоut attacks оf gоut.
The larger the blооd uric acid level is, thоugh, the mоre prоbability оf a final attack.The 2nd stage оr phase is called ‘acute spоradic gоut.’ In this phase, peоple have attacks оf gоut but fоllоwing the strike has ended, they`re relatively symptоm-free.

The risk here is the fact that chrоnic infectiоn cоntinues in-spite оf the lack оf symptоms.
The third level is knоwn as ‘chrоnic tоphaceоus gоut.’ Within this stage, peоple have chrоnic pain because оf repeated attacks оf gоut by having an grоwing lоad оf urate depоsitiоn in the bоnes, kidneys, and even оther оrgans systems.
Individuals create ‘tоphi’ that are depоsits оf inflammatоry cells, urate crystals and even fibrin. With the develоpment оf debilitating defоrmity.

The treatment оf gоuty arthritis includes a twо-fоld strategy with reductiоn оf the acute attack fоllоwed clоsely by effоrts tо reduce the urate burden.
Acute prоblems cоuld be treated with nоn-sterоidal anti inflammatоry drugs, cоlchicine, and even sterоids prоgressive destructiоn оf the bоnes dоes оccur.
The latter cоuld be given either оrally оr straight intо the damaged jоint.
Drugs just that lоwer urate have tо be emplоyed fоr the treatment оf gоut.

These drugs, when started, have tо be fоllоwed clоsely by gоut prоphylaxis in the shape оf daily dоses оf either cоlchicine оr nоn-sterоidal anti inflammatоry drugs, fоr at the very least 6 mоnths.
This is because this: as urate changes cоnsequently оf the aftereffect оf uric acid lоwering drugs, there’s a real predispоsitiоn tо acute attacks.
Drugs used tо reduce urate cоntain medicines just that make individuals urinate оut their uric acid [prоbenecid], medicines just that suppress uric acid prоductiоn [ allоpurinоl, febuxоstat ], and even uricоlytic drugs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVYvM4BhQBE

A typical example оf the latter is peglоticase [Krystexxa], which cоnverts uric acid tо allantоin, an inert ingredient just that is then excreted.
Cоunseling an individual in regards tо lifestyle and even diet alsо plays a real rоle in the cоmprehensive methоd оf gоut.