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Osteoporosis Health Centre
Medical Description |
Two classes
of osteoporosis
Osteoporosis can be classed as
either primary or secondary.
Primary osteoporosis
There are two different types
of primary osteoporosis.
Type 1 - Post-menopausal
osteoporosis
Type 1 usually occurs between the ages of 50 to 70, largely because of
estrogen loss at menopause. It mainly affects trabecular bone - the spongy
looking bone on the inside of the vertebrae. Much of the spine is made
up of trabecular bone, which looks like a honeycomb. It is very susceptible
to the effects of estrogen deficiency at menopause.
Type 2 - Age-related
osteoporosis
Type 2 is related directly to the aging process. It usually occurs in
people older than 70 years. It affects both trabecular and cortical bone.
Twenty percent of bone is trabecular bone and 80 percent is cortical bone.
Eighty percent of bone turnover occurs in the smaller amount of trabecular
bone.
Secondary
osteoporosis
Secondary osteoporosis can have
many causes, including:
- diseases that affect the
endocrine system, such as hyperparathyroidism or hyperthyroidism
- gastrointestinal (digestive)
tract diseases - Crohns disease (due to poor gut absorption of calcium
and vitamin D)
- alcoholism
- liver disease
- premature menopause
- amenorrhea or loss of periods
due to an eating disorder (low estrogen levels)
- a vitamin D deficiency
- time spent in bed because
of illness (non-weight bearing activity)
- poor nutrition
Sometimes, it is not the condition
that causes osteoporosis, but the drug used to treat other health problems.
For example:
- phenytoin (e.g. Dilantin
- used for treatment of epilepsy)
- corticosteroids (e.g. Prednisone,
inhaled steroids for asthma)
- drugs given to transplant
patients (e.g. Heparin, Cyclosporin, corticosteroids).
If you have an illness that needs
medication, ask your doctor or pharmacist if either the disease or medication
has any effect on your bone mass. Sometimes, taking the lowest dose possible
to treat a condition can lesson the effect on bones.
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