1.What is osteoporosis?
Osteoporosis is a systemic bone disease, commonly found in postmenopausal women and the elderly, characterized by a decline in bone mass and destruction of bone microstructure, manifested by an increase in bone fragility and a greatly increased risk of fracture, which is a serious hazard. With the increase of the elderly population in China, the incidence of osteoporosis is on the rise, and it is a health issue of concern in China and even globally.
2, osteoporosis should not be underestimated
In the medical world, prevention of osteoporosis to prevent fractures, treatment of hyperlipidemia to prevent myocardial infarction, and treatment of hypertension to prevent stroke, three diseases have been placed on an equal footing. Therefore, osteoporosis should never be underestimated. The most direct danger of osteoporosis is to cause fractures, and currently there are about 200 million osteoporosis patients worldwide, and its incidence ranks 7th among all kinds of common diseases and multi-morbidity. The annual medical cost of treating fractures in the elderly in China is about 15 billion yuan, and the resulting burden on the family is considerable. At least 30% of the elderly people with fractures are caused by osteoporosis.
3.Why does osteoporosis occur?
Under normal circumstances, bone metabolism is accomplished through the formation of new bone by osteoblasts and the decomposition and absorption of old bone by osteoclasts. The formation and resorption of bone are in a dynamic balance throughout a person’s life. During childhood and adolescence, bone formation is greater than resorption and reaches its highest value around the age of 30; thereafter, bone resorption is greater than formation, making bone density lower and lower, and when bone density falls below a certain level, osteoporosis occurs.
Osteoporosis is more common in women than in men, and the age of onset is earlier than in men. This is due to the rapid decline in estrogen levels in women after menopause, which results in a large loss of bone mass and may also lead to serious fractures, such as of the hip and spine. In the elderly, a decrease in height and a hunchback is noticed than before, which is actually a chronic fracture caused by osteoporosis. A slight bending or coughing may cause a vertebral fracture of the spine, causing pain.
4.What are the clinical manifestations of osteoporosis
(1) Bone and joint pain.
Usually diffuse, no fixed pain site, examination can not find pressure points, may be low back pain or circumferential pain, pain is aggravated when loading or activity is limited, serious turning, sitting and walking with difficulty.
(2) Height shortening and spinal deformity.
Commonly seen in vertebral compression fractures, which can be single or multiple, with or without causation.
(3) Fractures.
This is the most common and serious complication of osteoporosis.
It is often induced by minor activities or trauma, and fractures occur after bending, weight-bearing, crushing or falling to. Its occurrence site is usually in the spine, hip and wrist.
5.Who are more likely to have osteoporosis?
According to statistics, the following people have a higher chance of developing osteoporosis than the general population and should be prevented early.
(1) Those who consume a lot of coffee, tea, improper dieting and weight loss.
(2) People with calcium deficiency in their diet.
(3) Those who do not exercise much and do not get sunlight often.
(4) Those with reduced liver and kidney function.
(5) people who are getting older.
(6) people with genetic diseases.
(7) bedridden people for a long time
(8) post-menopausal women
(9) Those with high protein diet.
(10) Smokers and alcoholics.
(11) Long-term use of steroids, anti-spasmodics, diuretics, anticoagulants, gastric drugs and other drugs.
6.How to determine whether there is osteoporosis? — Bone densitometry.
Blood calcium measurement is only used as an auxiliary examination method because blood calcium is often normal in patients with osteoporosis, which is due to bone loss that causes calcium to enter the blood.
The World Health Organization has adopted bone densitometry as the gold standard for the diagnosis of osteoporosis. Bone densitometry evaluates the quality of bone, early understanding of bone loss and diagnosis of osteoporosis, and improves the basis for quality.
T ≥ -1.0 for normal bone mass, -2.5 < T < -1.0 for bone loss, and T ≤ -2.5 for osteoporosis.
7.How should osteoporosis be treated?
Treatment principles of osteoporosis: relief of bone and joint pain; improvement of activity function; long-term improvement of bone mass; prevention of fracture at critical areas.
Treatment for osteoporosis: basic treatment + medication, and changes in unhealthy lifestyle.
Basic treatment includes oral vitamin D, active vitamin D and calcium supplements.
Pharmacological treatment is the need to apply anti-osteoporosis drugs, including drugs that inhibit bone resorption and drugs that promote bone formation. The drugs that inhibit bone resorption include bisphosphonates, calcitonin, estrogen and estrogen receptor antagonists. The main drug to promote bone formation is parathyroid hormone.
8, middle-aged and elderly friends, out of the misunderstanding of calcium supplements!
The relationship between calcium and anti-osteoporosis drugs: calcium is necessary for anti-osteoporosis treatment. Without calcium supplementation, but simply applying anti-osteoporosis drugs, it is equivalent to having only production equipment without raw materials in a factory. Calcium supplementation alone without the application of anti-osteoporosis drugs is equivalent to having only raw materials but no production equipment in a factory. Therefore, when administering anti-osteoporosis treatment, both necessary calcium supplements and anti-osteoporosis drugs should be applied. How to apply them rationally requires consultation with relevant professional doctors to give professional guidance on medication.
9. Characteristics of various calcium supplements.
①Calcium carbonate: high calcium content, little side effects, high absorption rate, up to 40%, similar to milk.
② Calcium lactate: easy to dissolve, but low calcium content, containing 13% calcium
③Calcium gluconate: contains 9% calcium, and is even lower when made into tablets, requiring too many tablets to be taken orally to achieve a daily calcium supplement of 1000 mg for adults
④Calcium hydrogen phosphate: it is a commonly used calcium supplement in Japan, containing 23.3% calcium, which is relatively high, but the tablets are difficult to disintegrate and absorb, plus it contains phosphorus, which is harmful to people with kidney dysfunction, so it is less used.
10, self-care of osteoporosis.
① more sunshine and at least 15-60 minutes of outdoor exercise daily to increase vitamin D in the body, promote calcium absorption and strengthen bones.
② Eat more food containing calcium and protein, drink more milk and dairy products, and eat more dark green vegetables. shrimp skin, milk and soy products contain more calcium, and fish, chicken and milk contain more protein.
③ Avoid excessive strong tea and coffee, and avoid smoking and alcohol.
④Prevent various accidental injuries, especially falls that can easily cause wrist, hip and spinal fractures.
⑤ Consult a professional doctor to achieve prevention of osteoporosis.