title: [Diagnostic approach to osteoporosis].
abstract: The diagnostic approach to osteoporosis usually involves an ample risk assessment, a physical examination, a radiograph of the thoracic and lumbar spine, a bone densitometry using dual X-ray absorptiometry, and a basic blood test. The aim of this approach is to assign a person to one of the WHO-based diagnostic categories, and to estimate the ten-year fracture risk of this individual. In countries where available, the individual ten-year fracture risk can now easily be calculated for men and women of forty years of age and above, by using a computer-driven calculation tool, called FRAX, which has been developed by WHO recently.
authors.affiliation: Klinische Abteilung für Endokrinologie und Nuklearmedizin, Universitätsklinik für Innere Medizin, Medizinische Universität Graz, Graz, Austria. hans.dimai@meduni-graz.at
authors.forename: Hans Peter
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Dimai
mesh_terms: D015502:Absorptiometry, Photon; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001317:Austria; D001851:Bone Diseases, Metabolic / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D005598:Fractures, Spontaneous / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010024:Osteoporosis / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D018570:Risk Assessment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012307:Risk Factors; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D014944:World Health Organization