THE SIGNS OF OSTEOPOROSIS
Unfortunately in many cases the first sign is often the fracture of a bone, particularly in the wrist, hip or spine, after minimal damage or trauma. Tb avoid this painful outcome be aware of the signs that may indicate the earlier stages.
1. A gradual reduction in height associated with the lengthening of dresses and slacks.
2. A stooping of the spine and rounding of the shoulders, due to the square-shaped spinal vertebrae gradually collapsing into triangular wedges. If this is allowed to develop some women will form a hump on the spine below the neck, rather disparagingly called a 'dowager's hump'.
3. General aches and pains in the bones may signal early osteoporosis, so remember, all that aches is not necessarily arthritis Be wary of accepting anti-inflammatory arthritic medication or painkillers without first having tests done for osteoporosis.
4. Another useful clue is the texture of a woman's skin. II it rapidly loses its thickness and suppleness at the time of the menopause, then it is more likely that collagen loss is occurring in the bones. It is the loss of collagen fibres in the dermal layer of the skin that causes sudden wrinkling and loss of texture. Brittle nails and deterioration of the teeth may also give a clue.
According to experts at Kings College, London, the development of osteoporosis is due partly to a loss of collagen in the bones which causes them to become excessively brittle. The loss of collagen in the hones is often mirrored by a loss of collagen in the skin.
IS THERE A RELIABLE TEST FOR OSTEOPOROSIS?
For the first time, doctors now have a revolutionary test (called a "Bone Mineral Density Test" to accurately predict your chances of developing osteoporosis. The Bone Mineral Density Test (BMD) measures the concentration of minerals in your bones to determine how strong and resistant to fracture they are.
Ideally, all women should have a BMD test when they pass through the menopause and not several years later as bone mineral loss can be rapid in the first five years after the menopause. Ask your doctor for a referral to the Department of Nuclear Medicine of your local hospital or a private bone assessment centre to have a BMD test. Ideally, these centers should be equipped with the latest Lunar DPX-L Bone Densitometer machines which utilize dual energy X-ray absorpsiometry (DEXA) technology. Measurements of your bone density should be made in the spine and hips. By the way, ordinary X-rays are not an accurate test for osteoporosis.
This test takes only 15 to 20 minutes to perform, does not involve any injections, drugs or discomfort and costs less than $100. It is accurate to within half a per cent and its radiation emission is less than a dentist's X-ray. It really is an ideal test and can put your mind at rest. Diagram illustrates the increased rate of bone loss that occurs when a woman passes into the oestrogen deficiency zone of the menopause. The straight dotted line represents the bone fracture threshold which means that the bone mineral density has become so low that a bone may fracture under the slightest stress. In such unfortunate women, fractures of a hip may occur simply by jumping out of bed and putting all the weight on one hip or a vertebral compression fracture in the spine can occur while sitting in a car travelling over a rough road. Indeed, if your bone density crosses the fracture threshold you become a type of 4'china doll". From Diagram you can see that the oestrogen deficiency in the time zone around the menopause, represented by the shaded column is a crucial time corridor where loss of bone mass can be greatly accelerated and, indeed, during this time a rapid bone loser can lose a large amount of her total bone mass. More than 50% of the total amount of bone that will be lost in the post-menopausal years is usually lost in the first seven to ten years after the menopause.
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