Daijiworld Media Network - Udupi (GA)

Udupi, May 8: Osteoporosis is a disease in which bones become fragile and more likely to break. If not prevented or if left untreated, osteoporosis can progress painlessly until a bone breaks. These broken bones, also known as fractures, occur typically in the hip, spine, and wrist. Over the age of 50, 1 of every 2 women and 1 of every 8 men will develop this disease.

Bone mass density test, also known as bone mass measurement or bone mineral density test, measures the strength and density of bones. Bone Mass Densitometer measure how many grams of calcium and other bone minerals, collectively known as bone mineral content, are packed into a segment of bone. The higher your mineral content, the denser your bones are. And the denser the bones, the stronger they generally are and the less likely they are to break. The BMD test is painless, non-invasive, simple, and safe and it takes just 5 minutes to perform the BMD Test.           

In India it is estimated that 300 million people suffer from osteoporosis. It is also estimated that there may be a 50 per cent increase in the number of people with osteoporosis in India in the next 10 years. This is posing to be a huge problem in India.

A Bone Mass Densitometry Test will be done in the Department of Orthopedics, Kasturba Hospital, Manipal to Diagnose the Bone Density and Osteoporosis on Saturday May 10 2008 between 9 am to 3 pm. The Osteoporosis clinic has been functioning in the Orthopedics Department from the past 11 months on every second Saturday.