Overview Osteoporosis

A child may have spastic cerebral palsy in his or her legs as well as a degree of athetosis elsewhere. The characteristics of each of these syndromes are not mutually exclusive. With athetosis, the muscles are subjected to excessive and uncontrollable movement. These movements also increase with a child’s excitement and in response to surrounding environmental stimulation. Likewise, the more relaxed a child is, the less often these abnormal movements occur. When a child is sleeping, the movements stop altogether.

Your bones might seem sturdy now, you may be very active but osteoporosis and osteopenia are quiet, proficient thieves. In fact, there are usually no noticeable signs. You may notice a loss of height or a hump over time. But chances are good the first sign that you have one of these conditions will be a broken bone.

The bone loss with osteoporosis occurs over many years and can become severe. It may be so severe that the normal stress on bones from sitting, standing, coughing etc can result in painful fractures and immobility. Then, after the first fracture, you are at risk for more fractures. These future fractures may cause you to live with daily persistent pain and disability.

Osteoporosis often progresses without symptoms or pain. Losing height may be noticeable. Or a Dowager's hump in your spine may develop with age. Usually, though, a doctor diagnoses osteoporosis after a painful fracture occurs. That fracture is often in the back or hips.

Osteopenia refers to early signs of bone loss that can turn into osteoporosis. With osteopenia, bone mineral density is lower than normal. However, it is not yet low enough to be considered osteoporosis. A bone density test can detect osteopenia.

A fracture is a break in a bone. In osteoporosis, bones become thin, lose structure, and become fragile. Daily activities like lifting a grocery bag or tying a shoe lace can result into fracture or collapsed vertebra. While the pain from the fracture may subside, one may develop sustained continual pain. As spinal bones collapse, deformities such as a hump will become obvious to both you and people around you.

Causes osteoporosis are not known. But we do know how osteoporosis develops throughout a person's life. Bones are complex, living tissue. Body constantly breaks down old bone and rebuilds new bone. This bone-building process is called "remodeling."

Symptoms of Osteoporosis

A person is often not aware that he or she has osteoporosis until a fracture occurs. But there are occasionally symptoms of the disorder which include backache, gradual loss of height and an accompanying stooped posture & fractures of the spine, wrist, or hip.

Doctor should be approached for Osteoporosis if you develop a backache or sudden severe back pain, which can indicate a spinal compression fracture caused by osteoporosis. Also when a dental X-ray reveals loss of bone in the jaw, which can be a sign of osteoporosis.

Women experience rapid bone loss in their 50s as compared to men. By the time they're both in their late 60s, men and women lose bone mass at the same rate. Statistics show that one out of every four men over 50 will break a bone due to osteoporosis.

Osteoporosis in women:

A woman's risk of osteoporosis rises sharply after menopause. It's also especially true for women who have small, thin frames. Women who are thin and who exercise heavily are at a high risk of not having menstrual periods. This is a condition called amenorrhea. Loss of menstrual periods is linked to decreased estrogen levels. Decreased levels of estrogen may cause osteoporosis. A diet low in calcium and other bone-boosting nutrients can also contribute to low bone density.

Teenage girls who restrict their eating and irregular menstrual periods are at risk of osteoporosis and fractures. Young female athletes who try to reach a low body weight for running or dancing are more likely to have irregular periods. So are those who compete in scoring sports such as gymnastics and figure skating.

A young female athlete who appears to be in top physical condition often has the highest risk of low bone density -- osteoporosis -- and fracture, especially if she has an eating disorder and has irregular periods. In fact, a fracture may be the sign that first alerts the doctor there is a problem.