Osteoporosis medical conditions associated with

Osteoporosis is a skeletal disease that is characterized by loss of bone mass as well as microarchitectural deterioration of the bone tissue. This disease is associated with increased bone fragility and susceptibility to fracture. It is a condition that is characterized not by inadequate bone formation but, rather, by a deficiency in the production of well-mineralized bone mass. Whereas no medical cause typically is evident in primary osteoporosis (3), secondary osteoporosis classically stems from medical illness or medication use. There are two types of primary adult osteoporosis, type I, or postmenopausal, and type II, or senile (Table 35.1). In type I osteoporosis, there is an accelerated rate of bone loss via enhanced resorption at the onset of menopause. In this form of the disease, the loss of trabecular bone is threefold greater than the loss of cortical bone. This disproportionate loss of bone mass is the primary cause of the vertebral crush fractures and the wrist and ankle fractures experienced by postmenopausal women. In type II osteoporosis, which is associated with aging, the degree of bone loss is similar in both trabecular and cortical bone (5) and is caused by decreased bone formation by the osteoblasts. 

TABLE 53-2. Medical Conditions and Drugs Associated with Osteoporosis or Low Bone Mass... 

There is no medical problem related to women s health that has a higher negative impact on morbidity (and frequently mortality) than menopause, a condition closely associated with declining sex steroid availability. The most important problems associated with menopause are osteoporosis, atherosclerosis, and cardiovascular diseases. It is estimated that 40 million women are menopausal or postmenopausal in the United States alone (Andrews, 1995 Curtis, 1999). 

Various unrelated medical conditions have been observed to be associated with lowered serum or whole blood manganese. These include osteoporosis, diabetes mellitus, and epilepsy. The clinical relevance of such observations is uncertain. 

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