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. 2012 Dec;16(Suppl 2):S205-12.
doi: 10.4103/2230-8210.104040.

Assessing bone health in children and adolescents

Michael A Levine  1
Affiliations

Assessing bone health in children and adolescents

Michael A Levine. Indian J Endocrinol Metab. 2012 Dec.

Abstract

During normal childhood and adolescence, the skeleton undergoes tremendous change. Utilizing the processes of modeling and remodeling, the skeleton acquires its adult configuration and ultimately achieves peak bone mass. Optimization of peak bone mass requires the proper interaction of environmental, dietary, hormonal, and genetic influences. A variety of acute and chronic conditions, as well as genetic polymorphisms, are associated with reduced bone density, which can lead to an increased risk of fracture both in childhood and later during adulthood. Bone densitometry has an established role in the evaluation of adults with bone disorders, and the development of suitable reference ranges for children now permits the application of this technology to younger individuals. We present a brief overview of the factors that determine bone density and the emerging role of bone densitometry in the assessment of bone mass in growing children and adolescents.

Keywords: Bone health; adolescents; children.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest: None

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