To prevent the osteoporosis playing in advance

Abstract

There are several possibilities for the prevention of primary, secondary and tertiary osteoporosis but till now they have not been promoted enough and bone fragility is thought about only after the onset of a fracture (tertiary prevention). By recent studies and discoveries it is becoming increasingly clear that there is a relationship between growth and development in early childhood and bone health in old age. Suboptimal bone development leads to a reduction in peak bone mass, and a higher risk of osteoporotic fracture later in life. Preventative strategies against osteoporosis can be aimed at either optimizing the peak bone mass obtained, or reducing the rate of bone loss. Optimization of peak bone mass may be more amenable to public health strategies. Technological advances and our knowledge of osteoporosis have increased in the last decade and so tertiary prevention should be considered a failure in the field of public health. If we want to make advances in the osteoporotic field, we must start in childhood, before the bone mass peak is reached and the gold-standard is starting with prevention as soon as possible, also during fetal development.

Keywords: childhood; osteoporosis; peak bone mass; prevention.