Osteoporosis

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Osteoporosis is a disease that affects the bones of human beings under different conditions. Its signs and symptoms as stated in the paper describe the different situations where a person can be diagnosed with the illness. From the symptoms, a person then undergoes diagnostic therapy where a doctor confirms that indeed they are suffering from the disease. The doctor takes charge and treats the patients depending on their condition. There are various types of medications that can be given to people suffering from Osteoporosis.

The patients are also given preventive measures in which they can avoid the diseases and help them to get better . Other people are not left out because there are ways in which they can prevent this disease. For the people suffering from the diseases, there is an extra rehabilitation program that will help them get better faster. It is good for people to take pr ecaution and prevent this disease.

Introduction

 
Osteoporosis affects the bones by making them fragile and henc e fractures easily. A minor twist in the body can lead to a bone fracture. This happens because the bone has lost its density . The bone is a living tissue that is constantly replaced by a new bone. Osteoporosis occurs when there is less calcium in the body where the body is not able to produce new bone and fails to keep up with the removal of the old bone. This disease can affect any person, but in most cases it affects white and Asian women. Body weight, smoking, low sex hormones, and aging can lead to the disease (Hamdy and Lewiecki 10).

Signs/Symptoms

 
One of the visible and common signs of osteoporosis is fracture after a minor accident. This is usually the first sign of this disease. It is not easy for a bone to fracture or break through fall . However, a fragile bone is easy to break and this might be a sign that the person is suffering from osteoporosis. Fragility in most cases occurs in the wrist, hip, shoulder, or the vertebrae, the bones that make up the spine. Since these symptoms happen in older people, in most cases, they end up having problems because the fractured bone is not easy to repair (Pozzilli, Andrea, Bart and William 68). The second symptom is persistent back pain, loss of height, and a stooping posture. These symptoms indicate that a person has a broken vertebra and they have to lean forward to support their body. The vertebrae can fracture even without a fall or any provocation. This symptom is serious because it affects breathing, which is as a result of the lungs having minimal space to expand. The other symptom of osteoporosis is a risk of falling . This is where a person with osteoporosis falls more often. This comes with aging because the bones are not strong enough to support the body. After a fall, a person develops a fracture like in the hip area which can affect mobility.

Etiology

 
Osteoporosis is caused by various factors. One of the factors is low testosterone in men. This is because testosterone is converted into oestrogen that preserves bones. The second cause of osteoporosis is hormone imbalance . There are hormones whose role in the body is to regulate the bone density. This is the work of the parathyroid and growth hormones. When parathyroid is too much, a condition called hyper parathyroid develops. Hyper parathyroid leads to loss of calcium in the urine at the expense of a person’s bones . If the calcium element is minimal in the body, it means that the bones are weak . As people age, their bodies produce minimal growth hormone which is also required for building strong bones. The third cause is lack of calcium in the body . A person requires a constant level of phosphorous and calcium in the body. When other organs are in need of calcium they take it from the bones store houses, leaving the bones with minimal or no calcium. This can lead to thin and fragile bones. Lack of vitamin D is also another cause (Hamdy, and Lewiecki 38). This vitamin helps in the absorption and usage of calcium in the bones. Smoking is another possible cause of osteoporosis. People who smoke suffer from a lower density of bones and high risk of fractures. The toxic substances from smoking like nicotine can block the body’s ability to use calcium, oestrogen, and vitamin D.

Diagnostic and therapeutic procedures of osteoporosis

 
Diagnosis of this disease depends on the family’s medical history, laboratory tests, bone density measurement, and physical examination. There are two stages in which osteoporosis can be diagnosed. Once the fractures have already started occurring, it is referred to as manifest . If the fractures have not yet occurred and doctors have already diagnosed the patient with the disease, it is called, preclinical. During the diagnosis of this disease, doctors have to go through certain procedures to fully affirm that the patient is indeed suffering from osteoporosis. The first step is to measure bone mineral density. This is one of the methods of detecting osteoporosis. It also determines whether a person has the risk of acquiring this disease or not (Pozzilli, Andrea, Bart, and William 101). The basic goal of carrying out this test is to know whether a person is suffering from the disease or whether the person has any chances of suffering from the disease . This test is conducted by conduction a dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) . This is the test that gives an accurate measurement at the major points of the body with minimal radiation dose. The test is pain free and does not cause any injury. The final result, which is called a T score, should be 2.5. If it is lower, it shows that the patient has a high risk of having osteoporosis.

The other method through which osteoporosis can be diagnosed is using of blood samples to measure the levels of serum calcium and potassium levels in the body (Marcus, ET al 106). If the levels are too low, the chances of a person developing osteoporosis are high Ultrasound or computed tomography (Q-CT) is an examination of the bones that determine the risk of fracture. It can estimate the risk of a fracture within ten years. In most cases, it uses individual tests and bone densitometry test to determine this disease. Osteoporosis can be treated in different ways. One of the ways is regular physical exercise to strengthen body muscles and coordination to avoid immobilization. Physical exercise can be used to prevent the diseases . The second way, which is also used as a prevention measure is to have a high calcium diet or have an additional calcium intake. The third way is to have sufficient exposure to sunlight every day for the body to absorb vitamin. In places where there is no sunlight for extended periods, supplements of vitamin D can also help out. Other ways are to maintain an appropriate body weight, to quit smoking, and minimize consumption of alcohol and caffeine.

Once a person has been diagnosed with osteoporosis, he or she should start up with drug therapy based on the clinical condition of the patient. There are various medicines that can be given to these patients. One of the drugs is bisphosphonates (Marcus et al. 60). These are the first drug choices that are known to reduce the rate of risks by approximately 50%. The second drug that can also have the same effect as bisphosphonates is the strontium ranelate. Synthetic hormones, such as raloxifine, and the parathyroid hormone can also be used to cure of bisphosphonates. There are other cases where surgery is required. The surgery’s main purpose is to inject cement into the vertebra when the induced fractures of the body are acute. The process is very painful and limits mobility. The vertebral body could be lifted up if it had bent forward and reduce the curvature of the spine.