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Cited by 708Bone health and osteoporosis researchMenopause: Health Impacts and TreatmentsBone Metabolism and Diseases

How Many Women Have Osteoporosis?

Open access
Melton, L. Joseph, Chrischilles, Elizabeth A., Cooper, Cyrus, Lane, Ann W., Riggs, B. Lawrence·2005·Journal of Bone and Mineral Research
DOI 10.1359/jbmr.2005.20.5.886
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Abstract

Osteoporosis is widely viewed as a major public health concern, but the exact magnitude of the problem is uncertain and likely to depend on how the condition is defined. Noninvasive bone mineral measurements can be used to define a state of heightened fracture risk (osteopenia), or the ultimate clinical manifestation of fracture can be assessed (established osteoporosis). If bone mineral measurements more than 2 standard deviations below the mean of young normal women represent osteopenia, then 45% of white women aged 50 years and over have the condition at one or more sites in the hip, spine, or forearm on the basis of population-based data from Rochester, Minnesota. A smaller proportion is affected at each specific skeletal site: 32% have bone mineral values this low in the lumbar spine, 29% in either of two regions in the proximal femur, and 26% in the midradius. Although this overall estimate is substantial, some other serious chronic diseases are almost as common. More importantly, low bone mass is associated with adverse health outcomes, especially fractures. The lifetime risk of any fracture of the hip, spine, or distal forearm is almost 40% in white women and 13% in white men from age 50 years onward. If the enormous costs associated with these fractures are to be reduced, increased attention must be given to the design and implementation of control programs directed at this major health problem.

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  • A vertebral fracture is consistent with a diagnosis of osteoporosis even in the absence of a bone density diagnosis.

    “A vertebral fracture is consistent with a diagnosis of osteoporosis, even in the absence of a bone density diagnosis, and is an indication for pharmacologic treatment with osteoporosis medication to reduce subsequent fracture risk [18, 21].”

    From Clinician’s Guide to Prevention and Treatment of Osteoporosis (2014) · cites this paper as [21]

  • A vertebral fracture is an indication for pharmacologic treatment with osteoporosis medication to reduce subsequent fracture risk.

    “A vertebral fracture is consistent with a diagnosis of osteoporosis, even in the absence of a bone density diagnosis, and is an indication for pharmacologic treatment with osteoporosis medication to reduce subsequent fracture risk [18, 21].”

    From Clinician’s Guide to Prevention and Treatment of Osteoporosis (2014) · cites this paper as [21]

    The OSTEOPENIA passage (p. 4) says pharmacologic agents can preserve bone mass, and the conclusion (p. 6) calls for research on treating high-risk individuals. Neither says that a vertebral fracture is an indication for medication or that treatment after one reduces subsequent fracture risk. I searched for those treatment claims in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.76)

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Research works printed but not linked: 3

  1. [5]5. Melton LJ III 1991 Differing patterns of osteoporosis across the world. In: Chesnut CH (ed.) New Dimensions in Osteoporosis in the 1990s. Excerpta Medica Asia, Hong Kong, pp. 13-18.
  2. [8]8. Melton LJ III, Chao EYS, Lane J 1988 Biomechanical aspects of fractures. In: Riggs BL, Melton LJ III (eds.) Osteoporosis: Etiology, Diagnosis and Management. Raven Press, New York, pp. 111-131.
  3. [2]2. osteoporosis. N Engl J Med (in press).

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Authors
Melton, L. J., Chrischilles, E. A., Cooper, C., Lane, A. W., & Riggs, B. L.
Affiliations
  • Mayo Clinic (US)
  • University of Iowa (US)
Corresponding author
Melton, L. Joseph
ORCID
Venue
Journal of Bone and Mineral Research
Publisher
Oxford University Press (OUP)
Published
2005-05-01
Volume
20
Issue
5
Pages
886-892
ISSN
  • 0884-0431 (ISSN-L)
  • 1523-4681
DOI
10.1359/jbmr.2005.20.5.886
OpenAlex
W2038050797
Cited by
708
References
36
Citations by year
2026: 2 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 6 · 2021: 17 · 2020: 28 · 2019: 16 · 2018: 11 · 2017: 23 · 2016: 22 · 2015: 17 · 2014: 31 · 2013: 18 · 2012: 30
FWCI
39.89
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
academic.oup.com/journals/pages/open_access/funder_policies/chorus/standard_publication_model (vor)
Locations
  • Journal of Bone and Mineral Research (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • ePrints Soton (University of Southampton) (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Orthopedics and Sports Medicine › Bone health and osteoporosis research
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism › Menopause: Health Impacts and Treatments
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Bone Metabolism and Diseases
Keywords
osteoporosis, osteopenia, women, bone mineral density, fracture risk, hip fracture, vertebral fractures, forearm fractures, prevalence, Rochester, Minnesota, population survey, health care costs
MeSH terms
Female, Humans, Osteoporosis, Bone Density, History, 20th Century

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