The complications of hip fractures include hospitalizations, lengthy stays in nursing homes and rehabilitation centers, pain, physical disability, loss of the ability to perform routine activities independently, and also deterioration of one's emotional health and social life. Experts estimate that up to 20 percent of individuals will die within one year of a hip fracture due to associated complications and ap-proximately 50 percent will not return to their previous level of activity. Experts also estimate that Caucasian women in the United States have the same chance of dying of the complications of a hip fracture as of breast cancer. However, no one should assume that growing older means they will have to suffer the consequences of having osteoporosis. Important advances in our knowledge of how to prevent and treat osteoporosis have resulted in guidelines concerning changes in lifestyle habits, adequate calcium intake for men and women of different ages, exercise, and the option of different medications for treatment.
Medical treatment is prescribed according to each individual's risk for fractures.
Adequate calcium intake in food or tablets is always recommended, as well as exercise tailored to each individual's capabilities. Exercise can help decrease some of the symptoms associated with osteoporosis or limit their severity. The best way to know whether you have or are at risk of having osteoporosis is to consult your doctor and discuss the need to perform a bone density scan, the test we now use to diagnose the disease. Silvina Levis is an Associate Professor and Director of the Osteoporosis Center, Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center at the Miami Veterans Affairs and the University of Miami School of Medicine.