In the article, we consider the main symptoms and treatment of osteoporosis. It is a pathological condition characterized by the destruction of bone tissue, when the decay process begins to prevail over the synthesis. Against the background of osteoporosis, bone strength decreases and, accordingly, their fragility increases. In addition, there is a violation of the internal structure of the bones. Osteoporosis can act as an independent pathology or serve as a symptom of other diseases. Treatment of osteoporosis should be timely.
General information
Osteoporosis is one of the most common ailments. Its prevalence is especially high among the elderly. Currently, such a problem as osteoporosis is very relevant. Here are some interesting information:
- Approximately eighty percent of women over the age of fifty can show signs of this pathology. It should be noted that in men this disease is much less common.
- In European hospitals, the number of patients with osteoporosis after forty-five years is always significantly higher than the number of patients with myocardial infarction, breast cancer and diabetes.
- The most common complication is a femoral neck fracture, which is detected every year in two hundred and fifty thousand US residents.
- Almost every woman after sixty five years old gets at least one fracture, and it is often associated with osteoporosis.
- According to experts, if the prevalence of osteoporosis continues to increase, as it is now, then in thirty years it can turn into a massive epidemic.
Symptoms and treatment of osteoporosis in women were common in ancient times, as evidenced by the images of the ancient periods, which depict people with a characteristic disorder of posture. European experts began to deal closely with this problem only in the century before last, when a discovery was made, according to which it turned out that a hip fracture in old age is directly related to bone tissue changes.
Before considering the symptoms and treatment of osteoporosis, let's talk about the causes of the disease.
What are the causes of osteoporosis?
The fact is that the human bone tissue is in constant dynamic equilibrium. The process of creation and simultaneous destruction regularly occurs in it. The base for the deposition of a mineral compound is collagen. On its molecules, as on a skeleton, calcium crystals form and grow, which later turn into hydroxyapatites. The function of mineralization of bone tissue is performed by special cells called osteoblasts. They secrete phosphates, which later combine with calcium. There is another type of cell called osteoclasts. They monitor the destruction of bone tissue and leaching of mineral compounds from it. It is worth noting that to date, the process of bone mineralization is not well understood.
Here are the factors that affect the mineralization of bone tissue. It is these reasons that increase the risk of osteoporosis:
- Hormonal causes. Some hormones are able to activate osteoblasts with the synthesis of bone tissue, while others, on the contrary, contribute to the leaching of calcium and phosphorus into the blood. The risk of osteoporosis can increase significantly in the presence of hormonal imbalances, pathologies of the thyroid gland, adrenal glands, and, in addition, parathyroid glands. In women, this disease often develops after menopause, since at this point in the body the content of estrogen that protects the bones from destruction is reduced. That is why the treatment of osteoporosis in women after 50 years is carried out so often.
- Hereditary factors. It is well known that osteoporosis is more often observed in people of the Mongoloid and Caucasoid races. The risk of acquiring this disease is especially increased in the presence of such a pathology in relatives.
- Unhealthy Lifestyle. Smoking, along with alcohol and malnutrition, and, in addition, overweight with a sedentary lifestyle only exacerbate the situation and increase the likelihood of osteoporosis.
- Various diseases. The formation of osteoporosis in the body can contribute to various diseases of the blood, digestive system, heart, as well as all kinds of autoimmune pathologies.
- Taking medications. An increased risk of osteoporosis is caused by side effects of a wide range of drugs.
It is often difficult to name one cause that led to the onset of the disease. Osteoporosis causes a whole combination of various reasons. They can accumulate over time, and at some point, changes in bone tissue can reach a critical level.
Symptoms and treatment of osteoporosis are of interest to many.
General manifestations of pathology
Osteoporosis, first of all, is dangerous because at first it does not manifest itself in any way, accompanied by minimal symptoms. Often, the diagnosis is made even in the presence of serious complications in the form of bone fractures. Among the common symptoms characteristic of the initial stages, the following symptoms can be called:
- The appearance of pain in the bones, especially when the weather changes.
- Increased overall body fatigue.
- Premature gray hair.
- The appearance of plaque.
- The development of periodontal disease, that is, a disease that affects the tissues surrounding the roots of the teeth.
- The presence of heart palpitations.
The symptoms and treatment of osteoporosis of the spine will be discussed below.
The appearance of pathological fractures is the most common complication. Pathological fractures can occur with minimal contact with the bone. The effects that can lead to pathological fractures are usually as follows:
- Awkward movement.
- Getting a weak blow, the strength of which is insufficient to fracture a bone to a healthy person.
- Falling down.
- Coughing with a sneeze.
- Normal loads, for example, while walking on the bones of the legs.
Pathological fractures occur due to the fact that the bones of a person become too fragile. Often fragments are extremely poorly fused. Thus, against the background of osteoporosis, bone tissue regeneration is disturbed. Between the fragments, a false joint, the so-called pseudoarthrosis , can form. Against this background, the functions of the affected limb are greatly deteriorated.
These are the most common symptoms. The treatment of osteoporosis in women is discussed below.
Symptoms of limb osteoporosis
The common symptoms that are noted at the initial stage are usually the following:
- The appearance of bone pain, which intensifies during a change in weather. They are usually not very strong and are aching in nature. Patients may not attach importance to them for a long time and consider it a manifestation of normal fatigue.
- The appearance of seizures in the muscles of the limbs at night.
- A change in the appearance of the nails, which begin to exfoliate, becoming very fragile.
- Observation of deformity of the limbs mainly of the legs. This symptom is noted with a long course of pathology.
But often the diagnosis is made, not relying on the listed symptoms, but after complications in the form of pathological bone fractures.
Hip fracture
The femoral neck is the narrowest part of the bone with which its body is connected to the head. It is she who often undergoes fractures with the development of osteoporosis. Often, such a fracture occurs in women aged sixty-five to eighty-five. This fracture is one of the most common causes of disability among adults. The following symptoms of pathological fractures of this bone in osteoporosis are distinguished:
- The presence of prolonged severe pain in the groin. Almost no patient associates this symptom with femoral problems. People mostly endure pain and do not go to the doctor. The moment of fracture may be unnoticed.
- Shortening a sore leg. Such a sign also often goes unnoticed, because the difference itself, as a rule, is small - within four centimeters.
A pathological fracture of this bone is usually treated for a very long time and with great difficulty. The neck with the femoral head has some features of blood supply. In the event that blood vessels are damaged during the fracture, aseptic necrosis will occur: the femoral head will die and begin to dissolve.
The best drugs for treating osteoporosis should be prescribed by a doctor.
Osteoporosis of the spinal column: symptoms
Symptoms of osteoporosis of this part of the skeleton are usually as follows:
- The appearance of back pain. Depending on the position of the pathological processes, the patient may be disturbed by lower back pain, and, in addition, between the shoulder blades. Often they appear against the background of prolonged work in a uniform pose.
- Violation of posture. Patients with osteoporosis of the spine usually have a strong stoop.
- A decrease in human growth, which is associated with a decrease in the height of the spinal column in patients.
- Lack of mobility of the spinal column, which happens due to pain and deformation of the vertebrae.
Treatment of spinal osteoporosis can often be difficult. Compression vertebral fracture is one of the most common complications of this disease. Such a picture is revealed annually among seven hundred thousand people around the world. With compression fractures, the vertebra is flattened, as it were, squeezed inward, as a result of which its height decreases. The leading edge is often deformed, as a result of which it can take the form of a wedge. Compression fractures in this area of the skeleton can be characterized by severe pain in the spine, which is why patients often cannot stand or sit for long. Thus, osteoporosis of the spinal column manifests itself in the form of symptoms, strongly reminiscent of osteochondrosis. Doctors often have difficulty distinguishing one disease from another.
The treatment of osteoporosis of the joints will be described in detail below.
Symptoms
Osteoporosis of this type is a lesion of the heads of bones involved in the formation of the joint itself. In its symptoms, the pathology is very similar to arthrosis. So, the main signs of this pathology are as follows:
- The appearance of pain in the joints.
- The formation of swelling of tissues in the area of the joint.
- The appearance of deformations.
- Sound with a crunch sensation during any movement.
- General impaired mobility.
The following areas are among the most common locations for osteoporosis of joints:
- Hip joint. Its main complications include the previously mentioned hip fracture.
- Knee joints.
- Wrist joint.
- Shoulder joints.
- Small joints, such as wrists, hands, fingers, toes, and so on.
- Intervertebral joints.
Treatment of osteoporosis should be comprehensive.
Which doctor treats osteoporosis?
The reasons for the development of this pathology are very diverse. Therefore, various specialists are involved in its treatment. Doctors who are involved in the diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis:
- Orthopedic traumatologists specialize in injuries and various disorders of the skeletal system.
- Endocrinologists deal with diseases of the endocrine system, for example, the thyroid gland, adrenal glands and so on.
- Rheumatologists are specialists in the field of joint and connective tissue diseases.
In the treatment of osteoporosis, diet plays an important role.
Diet
The main objectives of therapeutic nutrition in the development of this disease are the following goals:
- Enriching the diet with foods that contain large amounts of calcium.
- Enrichment of the diet with products that contain substances that contribute to improved absorption of calcium.
- Exclusion of foods that slow down and impair calcium absorption.
To maximize the absorption of calcium with phosphates in the treatment of osteoporosis of the hip joint, such beneficial microelements as magnesium along with copper and vitamins A, K, B6 and D must necessarily enter the body. When developing osteoporosis, the body needs a complete protein diet. What foods containing enough calcium are indicated for osteoporosis? Information about them is given below:
- Useful - milk, cottage cheese, yogurt, cheeses and so on.
- The daily diet must consist of cereals and cereals.
- The use of vegetables of dark green color is useful.
- It is equally important to eat dried apricots and other dried fruits.
- It is recommended to eat nuts and wholemeal bread.
- Meat and oily fish are allowed.
In the event that with the help of nutrition it is not possible to cover your need for calcium, then it can be used as part of vitamins, and, in addition, various dietary supplements or in the form of drugs for the treatment of osteoporosis. Thus, patients are often prescribed calcium chloride or calcium gluconate. Also worth mentioning are foods that impair calcium absorption and are not recommended for patients with osteoporosis. So, we are talking about coffee, strong tea, chocolate, alcohol, pork, beef and liver. All of these foods contain too much iron, which impairs calcium absorption in the treatment of osteoporosis.
Calcium drugs effective in therapy
With osteoporosis, three types of calcium preparations are used:
- Calcium chloride.
- Calcium gluconate.
- Calcium Lactate
The best safe drugs for treating osteoporosis are presented below.
Medication Therapy
Hormone replacement therapy is used as a prophylaxis and in parallel with other measures. It is advisable only at the initial stage of osteoporosis. At the next stage of the development of the disease, a hormonal drug is used - an analogue of the hormone that the parathyroid glands secrete. This is Forsteo (Teriparatid).
The indication for prescribing is mineral bone rarefaction associated with a decrease in the level of sex hormones in both men and women and in osteoporosis, which developed from glucocorticosteroids.
The course of therapy lasts an average of 1.5 years. But Forsteo is not included in the international protocol for the treatment of osteoporosis. Bisphosphonates and Denosumab take the first place there.
Also popular is Miacalcic. This is an analogue of the human thyroid hormone, but it is obtained from salmon. Available in the form of a nasal spray. But people apply it with the beginning of a decrease in bone density.
In the treatment of osteoporosis in older women, bisphosphonates are increasingly preferred. This group of drugs reduces bone resorption and frequent repeated fractures, while the risk of thrombosis and thromboembolism does not increase.
Easy to use for the patient: 1 tablet once a week. The main thing is to choose the right drug.
Such a dosage regimen for the drug “Forosa” from osteoporosis. Prescribe 70 mg weekly. The price of this group of funds is quite high. So “Forosa” costs 600 rubles, “Bonviva” - 1,500 rubles (taken once a month).
Also effective are the preparations of zoledronic acid (Rezoklastin, Aklast). The most convenient for patients. An injection will be sufficient once a year. Zoledronic acid has a minimum of side effects.
Acceptable for osteoporosis is the use of painkillers, drugs from the NSAID group. Ointments for this ailment symptomatically affect, somewhat relieve pain, relieve inflammation, improve blood circulation.
Exercises for Osteoporosis
A set of exercises in the presence of this disease should be carried out according to the doctor's prescription. Specialists in the treatment of osteoporosis of the hip joint take into account the stage of the disease with the severity of changes in the bones, age and physical abilities of patients. But in the event that a person decided to do gymnastics at home on his own, then first he needs to consult a doctor. A set of exercises for the treatment of osteoporosis in women is usually carried out in such a way that a person should take a starting position and lie on the floor on his back. Next you need:
- To bend and unbend the feet, making them turn outward and inward.
- Bend and extend your arms. As part of this exercise, the brushes are brought to the shoulders.
- Raise straight arms up.
- Next, they put a roller under the legs so that the knees are bent. Then carry out the extension of the knees.
- Bend the knees, pulling them to the chest, and stay in this position for five seconds.
After that, they lie on the floor on the stomach:
- Raise your shoulders above the floor and stay in this position for five seconds.
- Next, perform the exercise "scissors", in which they cross their legs.
- Raise a leg above the floor as much as possible, but so that there is no pain, and the other leg with hands should be pressed to the floor.
What else is the treatment for osteoporosis in women?
Treatment with folk methods
In folk medicine, there is a fairly large arsenal of methods for treating this pathology:
- Treatment with comfrey compresses. Take dry leaves of comfrey and insist in a solution of Dimexidum for some time. Then they make compresses to all areas where the person is concerned about pain. Such treatment of osteoporosis with folk remedies is carried out twice a day.
- Mummy treatment. Take a certain amount of mummy, approximately from the match head. Dissolve in a glass of water. Take the drug three times a day twenty minutes before meals. The course of treatment for osteoporosis in women 50 years old is twenty days, then you need to take a break.
- Egg shell treatment with lemon juice. They crush eggshells very finely. Then mix it with lemon juice and take a tablespoon once a day. Alternative treatment of osteoporosis can be very effective.
- Treatment with compresses made from geranium. Take a spoonful of dried plants and brew in boiling water. Then insist the remedy for an hour. Apply the resulting medicine for compresses that are applied to the affected areas.
What are the symptoms and treatment of osteoporosis of the joints is now clear.
Prognosis and consequences of osteoporosis
With the right treatment, you can significantly slow down or even completely stop the development of osteoporosis. But, nevertheless, the working capacity of most patients with this disease is greatly reduced, and they are advised to change jobs or completely refuse to perform physical labor.
When complications of this pathology appear, the prognosis worsens significantly. For example, a pathological fracture of the femoral neck quite often leads to the death of patients. This happens, as a rule, during the first year after receiving an injury. Thus, in order to qualitatively treat osteoporosis, it is necessary not only to take medicines, but also to follow all medical recommendations regarding the correct lifestyle and nutrition, including.
In order not to have to treat osteoporosis in women 50 years old, pathology should be prevented.
Prevention
As part of the prevention of this serious disease, patients should follow these guidelines:
- Observe proper nutrition.
- Expose yourself to a sufficient amount of physical activity.
- Take multivitamin complexes along with biologically active food supplements containing calcium.
- Timely treat all diseases that may be the cause of osteoporosis.
- To give up all bad habits, in particular from smoking and alcohol.
- Compliance with the rational regime of work and rest.
- It is necessary to stay in the sun enough, since under the influence of sunlight in the skin there is the formation of vitamin D, which contributes to the absorption of calcium by the bones.
We examined the symptoms and treatment of osteoporosis of the hip joint and not only.