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As consequences of aging of the population and increased life expectancy, the number of cases of osteoporosis is increasing. One study projects that the number of fractures due to osteoporosis will increase by 34% in the next ten years in Argentina (from 135 thousand fractures in 2015 to 181 thousand in 2030).
The skeleton, a set of bones that is constantly modified and renewed every ten years, begins at the age of 30 to undergo the process of replacement more and more slowly. Is so when the loss of bone mass becomes more severe, osteoporosis can occur, a systemic skeletal disease characterized by the deterioration of the microarchitecture of the bones and by an increasingly weak resistance. However, has no symptoms and is usually discovered only when the first serious injury or fracture occurs, which generally occurs in the wrists, hips, and vertebrae.
According to figures from the study called “The economic burden of osteoporosis in four Latin American countries: Brazil, Mexico, Colombia and Argentina”, published in The Journal of Medical Economics, in our country the total economic burden of osteoporosis is about 7300 million pesos. According to this research, 3 billion correspond to surgical costs, 2.4 billion to hospital costs, and 1 billion to lost productivity costs. Other costs correspond to the sale of prescription drugs (192 million pesos per year) and the performance of complementary tests (510 million pesos per year). According to another study published worldwide, Osteoporotic fractures cause more hospital costs annually than heart attacks, strokes, and breast cancer.
Worldwide, this disease it affects 1 in 3 of women between the ages of 60 and 70 and 2 of every 3 of those over 80 years of age. In Argentina, meanwhile, it is estimated that 1 in 5 post-menopausal women have the condition in at least one area of their skeleton. “It is a disease that begins in childhood. Therefore the pediatrician should take care of nutrition and physical activity for patients to acquire their peak bone mass. When women reach menopause, a bone mass study and control must be carried out in order to attack this disease and thus avoid fractures. They generate morbidity and mortality. Then, early diagnosis and care from the patient and doctors, It is essential to have strong bones, “said the doctor. Maria Silvia Larroudé, rheumatologist and osteologist.
The doctor Larroudé it is vice president from Argentine Society of Osteoporosis; member of the Argentine Society of Rheumatology (SAR); director of Course of Osteo Immunology of the SAR; coordinator of the group of osteoporosis studies of the SAR; head of the Densitometry department of the Rossi Center and member of the International Society Clinical Densitometry. “In the case of having a disease that can affect the bone, it is also important to take care of it so that the patient can reach the age at which peak bone mass ends with a good flow and thus be able to face what comes next. Never stop paying attention to nutrition and physical activity”He added.
The osteoporosis affects more women than men, especially in post-menopausal age given the hormonal changes that the body goes through. It is estimated in our country that osteoporosis affects 1 in 5 postmenopausal women and that one in two women over the age of 50 will suffer a bone fracture due to osteoporosis. The incidence of these fractures – in particular those of the hip and spine- they increase with age, in both women and men. The International Osteoporosis Foundation estimates that After a hip fracture, one in three elderly people is totally dependent on care.
And although it is commonly a pathology linked to postmenopause, It also affects young women, who can suffer from decalcification fractures, particularly when they are underweight or do not eat properly. The spine and hip fractures They are the most complex: the first produces serious consequences – hospitalization, surgical treatment and greater risks of mortality and disability – and the second is asymptomatic.
Osteoporosis is a treatable disease, but requires changes in lifestyle, adequate intake of calcium and vitamin D, physical exercises and medications that increase bone mass and reduce the risk of future fractures. That is why it is advisable to take care of bone health every day with small changes in habits. Ideally, the patient should walk every day 30 minutes. In addition, you have to be very careful with some yoga exercises or with those of torsion and anterior flexion because when the bone is weak, in the event of a rapid flexion, a vertebra can fracture.
The objective of Stamboulian talks is to convey interesting, important or novel aspects of health issues through attractive and synthetic exhibitions. The goal is that each presentation serves as a trigger for the audience to feel motivated to deepen, investigate, create awareness or take action in relation to the topics presented.
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