Things Medical Practitioners Need To Know About Osteoporosis

Medical practice is organic.?It is constantly changing as new evidence and strategies emerge and are written into guidelines to steer future practice towards optimal patient outcomes. Without continuous updates, medical knowledge and clinical skills stagnate, and patients receive suboptimal care. The consequence can be potentially fatal.?

In some parts of the world, limited opportunities to access continuing medical education can create gaps in patient care and, in some cases, needless deaths.?But it need not be that way.?So, in my moments of silence, I asked myself how I could use my skills, knowledge and experience to impact the health outcomes of a population and, in doing so, make a slight difference in the world.?

My answer emerged as?The Missing Link to Improved Health Outcomes?or? The MiLHO Initiative .?

The Initiative's primary focus is to create opportunities for healthcare professionals in Africa to access online continuing medical education courses relevant to their unique medical practice environments.?

Our goal is to support healthcare professionals in their local setting, never to stop learning about their passion in the medical field, which directly impacts the care and outcomes of their patients.

Today, we're talking about something familiar that medical professionals often overlook; osteoporosis.

Osteoporosis is a health condition that causes bones to become weak, fragile and more likely to break. This condition makes bones so fragile that mild stresses such as bending over or sneezing can cause a fracture.

We will discuss the cause, the symptoms, the treatment, the prevention and how to help your patients live with osteoporosis.?

What causes osteoporosis?

Bones are living tissue that is constantly being broken down and replaced.?Osteoporosis occurs when the creation of new bone doesn't keep up with the loss of old bone. A lifelong lack of calcium mainly causes this loss since a low intake of calcium contributes to the destruction of bone density, early bone loss and an increased risk of fractures (osteoporosis).

Osteoporosis-related fractures mainly occur in the hip, wrist, or spine.

Although osteoporosis affects men and women of all races, white and Asian women, especially older women past menopause, are at the highest risk.

Medical professionals cannot diagnose osteoporosis without a fall or a fracture. That must be the reason why it's most common in older women who are prone to falling.

Symptoms of Osteoporosis

As you read in the last paragraph, osteoporosis typically has no symptoms in its early stages.?

But once osteoporosis weakens the bones, the patient might have signs and symptoms that include:?

• Back pain caused by a fractured or collapsed vertebra.?
• Loss of height over time?
• A stooped posture?
• A drop in estrogen or testosterone levels.
• Bones that break much more quickly than expected.

Can osteoporosis be treated?

Even though not considered incurable, doctors cannot completely treat osteoporosis. But there are some health and lifestyle changes that patients can make to strengthen bones and improve bone loss.

You may prescribe medications to help them rebuild and slow down bone loss.

Whether the patient needs treatment depends on their risk of breaking a bone. And this can be determined based on several factors, such as age, sex and the results of their bone density scan.?

You can suggest the safest and most effective treatment plan if they need treatment.

For post-menopausal women, the female estrogen hormone helps build new bone and manage bone density, so you can prescribe a drug therapy that includes estrogen treatments.

Be sure to tell them before the therapy starts that estrogen hormone therapy can mitigate other not-so-pleasant menopause symptoms, such as hot flashes.

Can your patients live with osteoporosis?

Since this health condition is not entirely curable, your patients can only learn how to live with it and reduce their chances of a fall.?

If they already have a fracture, you can prescribe some painkillers to relieve their pain and help them recover from a fracture.

You can advise them to talk to a trained counsellor, psychologist, or other people with the condition.

You can also put them on multivitamin products containing between 600 and 800 IU of vitamin D.

Talk to them during their routine checks and let them open up to you about their doubts and questions, and be sure to give them some support and tips on how to prevent a recurrence.

Since osteoporosis doesn't have a total cure, can it be prevented?

Yes! If your patient is over the age of 45, then they are at risk of developing osteoporosis. As their medical professional (doctor, general practitioner, nurse), you should advise them to take some steps to help keep their bones healthy and strong.

Ways of preventing osteoporosis may include:

1. Taking regular weight-bearing exercises, such as walking, climbing the stairs and running, to strengthen muscles and keep bones as strong as possible.

2. Sunbathing at the right time to get additional Vitamin D from the sun.

3. Increasing their intake of calcium: 1,200 mg of calcium daily is recommended for both older men and post-menopausal women.

4. Eating foods rich in protein: For every pound of body weight, consuming 0.4 grams of healthy proteins is recommended daily.

5. Increasing their daily magnesium intake (about 300mg - 500mg) and Vitamin K (around 90 mcg for women and 120 mcg for men daily).

6. Taking a daily supplement containing vitamin D - about 600 International Units (IU) for patients younger than 70 and 800 IU for older patients.

7. Building healthy life habits such as quitting smoking, reducing alcohol consumption, and maintaining a healthy weight.?

8. Limiting the consumption of caffeine which can weaken the bones.

9. Regular check-ups: They must inform you of any pain and discomfort during their routine check-up, so if it is osteoporosis, you can confront it quickly.

I hope this helps you serve your patients better.

Let me know about your experience with patients with osteoporosis.

I'm Helen Fosam and a medical writer passionate about improving patient health outcomes through continuing medical education in Africa.

To learn more about our courses and what we do, connect with The MiLHO Initiative and check out our website https://milho.net/.

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Research Credits to:

NHS - https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/osteoporosis/

Mayo Clinic - https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/osteoporosis/symptoms-causes/syc-20351968

PACT - https://physiciansallianceofconnecticut.com/blog/can-osteoporosis-be-reversed-learn-the-health-and-lifestyle-tips-to-curb-osteoporosis-symptoms/#:~:text=The%20short%20answer%20is%20no,and%20slow%20down%20bone%20loss.