A certain amount of bone density is lost as a part of aging. During the mid-30s, everyone begins to lose very small amounts of bone. There are certain risk factors that increase a person's chance of having osteoporosis. However many are avoidable. Smoking, alcohol use, long term use of corticosteroids, lack of exercise and low intake of dietary calcium all can contribute to the development of osteoporosis.
Most times there are no symptoms until a fracture occurs or a vertebrae collapses.
This is a painless test very similar to an x-ray. Although the best treatment is prevention, there are a number of medications currently available that may help to increase bone density. Estrogen replacement therapy is approved for both the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis. It has been shown to reduce bone loss, increase bone density in the spine and the hips and reduce the risk of hip and spinal fractures in postmenopausal women. Alendronate is a medication from the class of drugs called bisphosphonates.