Bone Health

Abstract

The gold standard for diagnosis of osteoporosis is measurement of an individual's bone mineral density on dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry scan. If this value is less than or equal to 2.5 standard deviations less than that of an adult female reference population, a person is said to have osteoporosis, with this risk increasing as a person ages. Female gender is a large risk factor in developing osteoporosis, regardless of ethnic or racial group. Frailty is another key factor in determining likelihood to develop osteoporotic fractures. Bisphosphonates are the first line agents for treatment of osteoporosis.

Keywords: Bone mineral density; Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry; Fragility fracture; Osteoporosis.