How many aspects are included in the manifestation of osteoporosis?

  With the aging of the population and the emphasis on quality of life, osteoporosis is increasingly becoming a social problem that plagues the elderly. Osteoporotic fracture is a serious consequence of osteoporosis. Due to the reduced bone mass, decreased bone strength and increased bone fragility, a fragility fracture can be caused by a minor injury during daily activities, and osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture is its most common fracture.  The incidence of osteoporosis has jumped to the 7th place of various common diseases in the world. The current elderly population in China is about 130 million, and the number of people over 60 years old is growing at a rate of 3.2% per year. The incidence of osteoporosis in China is about 6.6%, and the total number of patients is 60-80 million, which is the highest in the world, and the ratio of male to female is about 1:(2-3), and the patients are mainly elderly people over 60 years old and postmenopausal women.  The fractures caused by osteoporosis occur in the hip and the thoracolumbar segment of the spine, and in elderly patients, especially postmenopausal women, compression fractures of the spine are more common.The mechanism of OVCF is that the normal human vertebral body is mainly composed of trabecular bones, which intersect longitudinally and horizontally to form the primary structure of the vertebral body. Once the stress exceeds the strength of the trabecular bone, the structure of the trabecular bone will be destroyed and a local fracture will develop and a vertebral fracture will occur. As aging and osteoporosis occur, the surface density of trabecular bone gradually decreases and the morphological structure of trabecular bone is affected.  Clinical manifestations of OVCF vary with the severity of osteoporosis, the severity of fracture and the period of fracture. Only 1/3 of OVCF patients get immediate clinical diagnosis, which is due to the fact that some patients consider the pain as a result of osteoarthrosis and do not seek timely medical consultation, or because the patients do not have obvious pain and do not seek timely radiographic examination.The clinical manifestations of OVCF mainly include the following aspects: I. Low back pain Low back pain is the most important clinical manifestation and is the main reason for patients to seek medical consultation.  1. Acute stage After fracture, most patients have acute pain in the low back, and the painful area is at the injured vertebrae, and the pain increases significantly when turning over, so that they cannot turn over and dare not get out of bed.  2.Chronic period Some patients with early bed rest for a short period of time to reduce pain, that is, to get out of bed weight-bearing activities, easily lead to fracture does not heal, pseudo-joint formation. Some patients have severe osteoporosis, and although they are bedridden for a long time, it is difficult to improve bone strength and density rapidly, osteoporosis exists, and fractures keep occurring, and such patients mostly have chronic low back pain for a long time.  3. Radiating pain in the corresponding nerve distribution area Low back pressure pain can radiate to the thoracic and anterior abdominal areas and lower limbs. For example, in thoracic compression fracture, back pain radiates along the intercostal nerve, mostly manifesting as pain in the anterior thoracic region or rib arch; in patients with lumbar compression fracture, lumbar pain may radiate to the anterior abdominal region or along the femoral nerve or sciatic nerve, with painful wooden swelling sensation in the corresponding innervation area. The pain radiating to the anterior region of the abdomen and the front is common (66%), while the pain radiating to the lower extremities is rare (6%).  Posterior convexity deformity Sagittal imbalance of the spine: some patients have no obvious pain and discomfort after fracture, or the pain is reduced after early bed rest and self-treatment with pain medication, and they can still perform their daily work without being treated. Due to the patient’s early failure to brake, it often leads to continued compression and flattening of the fractured vertebrae, poor fracture healing, and progressive kyphosis.  III. Height decrease, spasm and convulsion of back muscles Some patients may experience height decrease (2~3cm), and some patients may experience convulsions due to pain at the fracture site, when the patient maintains the least painful position for a long time and the back muscles spasm for a long time, and when the pain is aggravated by turning or flexion and extension.  IV. Other manifestations such as reduced lung capacity respiratory dysfunction, abdominal compression – loss of appetite, increased lumbar anterior convexity – spinal stenosis, lumbar spondylolisthesis, etc., deterioration of health status, insomnia and depression, etc.