What is Osteoporosis?

As with most things medical, osteoporosis is Latin, and a combination of two different words. Osteo, meaning bones, and porosis, meaning porous. Why doctors feel the need to name things in Latin, we don't know. Osteoporosis is a disease where the bones become brittle and tend to break easily.

The places where fractures and breaks usually occur are the joints, specifically the wrist, hip and spine. Hips are usually broken in falls. This is the most serious of the osteoporotic fractures, as mobility will often be impaired afterword, forcing the sufferer to use a walker of wheelchair. Wrist fractures can happen just from everyday use, such as lifting a heavy weight and spine fractures can cause a 'dowager's hump', resulting in a permanent slump and loss of height.

Osteoporosis Signs and Symptoms

The signs and symptoms of osteoporosis are hard to see until you already have the disease. It can be silent, and can affect your bones without you even knowing it.

The signs and symptoms of osteoporosis you should be wary of are:

• Back pain, which can be severe, meaning a fractured or collapsed vertebra
• Loss of height over time
• A stooped posture
• Fracture of the vertebra, wrist, hip or other bone

As osteoporosis can sneak up on you without you knowing it, The National Osteoporosis Foundation recommends a bone density test if you are:

• A woman older than age 65 or a man older than age 70, regardless of risk factors
• A postmenopausal woman with at least one risk factor for osteoporosis
• A man between age 50 and 70 who has at least one osteoporosis risk factor
• Older than age 50 with a history of a broken bone
• Take medications, such as prednisone, aromatase inhibitors or anti-seizure

drugs, that are associated with osteoporosis

• A postmenopausal woman who has recently stopped taking hormone therapy
• A woman who experienced early menopause

If you meet these factors, do yourself a favor and see and doctor, get tested. It can't hurt, and just might save you some pain later.