[Metabolic bone markers and bone cell biology].
Various metabolic bone markers have been developed in order to analyze each process of bone resorption and bone formation. By evaluating the two processes using bone markers, an imbalance between bone resorption and formation can be estimated. Metabolic bone markers have already been in clinical use for the early diagnosis and the assessment of treatment efficacy in osteoporotic patients and for the diagnosis of cancer-induced bone diseases. Further elucidation of the mechanisms of formation and secretion, metabolic clearance, diurnal rhythm as well as their changes in various disorders should enable us to evaluate bone turnover at a real-time scale and to utilize for the diagnosis of a variety of metabolic bone diseases.
Matsumoto
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First Department of Internal Medicine, University of Tokushima School of Medicine.