title: Boning up on osteoporosis.
abstract: Osteoporosis may have once been considered just another harbinger of the aging process, like liver spots, gray hair and big ears. But few aging Americans today will stand for it, literally and figuratively, now that there are various treatment alternatives at hand, and more on the way, thanks to medical advances in diagnostics and therapeutics. Baby boomers will be not only the largest, oldest cohort this nation--perhaps the world--has ever seen, they will also be the most active. And, they will be insistent and vocal about receiving medical care that allows them to fulfill their elder years with myriad pursuits; activities which will require mobility and pain-free living as much as possible. "No doubt osteoporosis will become a bigger health care issue," said Dr. Fagan. "We still don't think of it in the same category as heart disease and cancer, I guess because it is not lethal right away. But we have to recognize that it has serious medical implications that can lead to a downward spiral of medical problems that can mean the need for extended nursing care or prolonged illness. Those who suffer from it acutely can hardly do anything for themselves. People with spinal fractures are miserable with pain and a good hip fracture will take eight weeks healing time. Preventing these types of fractures by controlling bone loss is a basic health issue--a real quality of life issue--that we need to be addressing."
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kennedy
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D015914:Estrogen Replacement Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008875:Middle Aged; D015663:Osteoporosis, Postmenopausal / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000628:therapy*; D011379:Prognosis; D018570:Risk Assessment