Osteoporosis is a disease in which bones become fragile and more likely to break. If not prevented or if left untreated, osteoporosis can progress painlessly until a bone breaks. These broken bones, also known as fractures, occur typically in the hip, spine, and wrist.
Any bone can be affected, but of special concern are fractures of the hip and spine. A hip fracture almost always requires hospitalization and major surgery. It can impair a person’s ability to walk unassisted and may cause prolonged or permanent disability or even death. Spinal or vertebral fractures also have serious consequences, including loss of height, severe back pain, and deformity.
In the early stages of osteoporosis, you probably will not have symptoms. As the disease progresses, you may develop symptoms related to weakened bones, including:
Back pain.
Loss of height and stooped posture.
A curved upper back (dowager’s hump).
Broken bones (fractures) that might occur with a minor injury, especially in the hip, spine, and wrist.
Compression fractures in the spine that may cause severe back pain. But sometimes these fractures cause only minor symptoms or no symptoms at all.
I have osteoporosis too, as I lost my ovaries and had a sudden menopause in my late 40s…..am 53 now. I had a DEXA scan of my wrist at my GP surgery, and this showed that my bones were getting thinner – I am taking a nasty medicine once a week (Fosamax/Alendronate) which is supposed to help slow down bone loss –
I am assuming you have had a medical diagnosis of osteoporosis, and hope you are having some treatment. Osteoporosis is thinning of the texture of the bones themselves, as opposed to arthritis which affects the joints…..
I must say I get more general aches and pains than I used to (especially in my feet), but try to get some exercise each day, if it is only going for a walk or playing piano! Try to keep your posture as straight and upright as possible – maybe physiotherapy would help?
But as the first person to answer has said, often you don’t have any real symptoms from osteoporosis, and the first you know is that a bone fractures from a trivial injury…..I am thankful that I have got a diagnosis from a simple test, and can take some treatment.
Anyone over 50 can get osteoporosis, particularly women who have had surgery on the ovaries (rather than womb, as the ovaries make the hormones that help keep bones strong) or early menopause for any reason. Apparently women of slight build are at most risk. People who are taking steroids can be at risk too, I think.
I like to remember a verse from the Psalms as well as taking medicine, though – that the Lord protects all my bones, and not one of them will be broken! Good to remember on an icy morning……
Osteoporosis is a disease in which bones become fragile and more likely to break. If not prevented or if left untreated, osteoporosis can progress painlessly until a bone breaks. These broken bones, also known as fractures, occur typically in the hip, spine, and wrist.
Any bone can be affected, but of special concern are fractures of the hip and spine. A hip fracture almost always requires hospitalization and major surgery. It can impair a person’s ability to walk unassisted and may cause prolonged or permanent disability or even death. Spinal or vertebral fractures also have serious consequences, including loss of height, severe back pain, and deformity.
In the early stages of osteoporosis, you probably will not have symptoms. As the disease progresses, you may develop symptoms related to weakened bones, including:
Back pain.
Loss of height and stooped posture.
A curved upper back (dowager’s hump).
Broken bones (fractures) that might occur with a minor injury, especially in the hip, spine, and wrist.
Compression fractures in the spine that may cause severe back pain. But sometimes these fractures cause only minor symptoms or no symptoms at all.
I have osteoporosis too, as I lost my ovaries and had a sudden menopause in my late 40s…..am 53 now. I had a DEXA scan of my wrist at my GP surgery, and this showed that my bones were getting thinner – I am taking a nasty medicine once a week (Fosamax/Alendronate) which is supposed to help slow down bone loss –
I am assuming you have had a medical diagnosis of osteoporosis, and hope you are having some treatment. Osteoporosis is thinning of the texture of the bones themselves, as opposed to arthritis which affects the joints…..
I must say I get more general aches and pains than I used to (especially in my feet), but try to get some exercise each day, if it is only going for a walk or playing piano! Try to keep your posture as straight and upright as possible – maybe physiotherapy would help?
But as the first person to answer has said, often you don’t have any real symptoms from osteoporosis, and the first you know is that a bone fractures from a trivial injury…..I am thankful that I have got a diagnosis from a simple test, and can take some treatment.
Anyone over 50 can get osteoporosis, particularly women who have had surgery on the ovaries (rather than womb, as the ovaries make the hormones that help keep bones strong) or early menopause for any reason. Apparently women of slight build are at most risk. People who are taking steroids can be at risk too, I think.
I like to remember a verse from the Psalms as well as taking medicine, though – that the Lord protects all my bones, and not one of them will be broken! Good to remember on an icy morning……