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Surgeon general warns of osteoporosis

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United Press International

Friday, October 15, 2004

WASHINGTON, Oct 15, 2004 (United Press International via COMTEX) -- The U.S. surgeon general says that by 2020 half of all U.S. citizens older than 50 may be at risk for fractures from osteoporosis and low bone mass.

Dr. Richard H. Carmona, in his "Bone Health and Osteoporosis: A Report of the Surgeon General," said Thursday 10 million Americans over the age of 50 have osteoporosis, the most common bone disease, while another 34 million are at risk for developing osteoporosis.

And each year, roughly 1.5 million people suffer a bone fracture related to osteoporosis, the report said.

It also found that about 20 percent of senior citizens who suffer a hip fracture die within a year of fracture and about the same percentage with a hip fracture end up in a nursing home within a year.

Hip fractures account for 300,000 hospitalizations each year and now entail direct costs of nearly $18 billion.



Copyright 2004 by United Press International.

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