Bone Tests For The Over-50s: Is It Time You Got Tested?

Breaking a bone can be painful and cumbersome as we deal with casts and crutches if we need them. They can also be common once icy weather hits, but could you be ignoring fractures at the expense of your wellness? Experts from the National Bone Health Alliance are warning us not to ignore fractures if we’re over-50, even if they happened following icy falls, or accidents where fractures would be expected.

Being bone aware

The organisation states that just 20 per cent of people in the US who break a bone go on to get tested for osteoporosis, meaning we could miss the condition if we suffer fractures. Experts from the group explain that after we visit emergency rooms to get medical help for broken bones, we’re normally sent home without being offered tests. The alliance says it’s our responsibility to follow up on bone mineral density tests (BMDs) if we’re over 50, in case fractures are due to brittle bones and we then go on to have further breakages that may prove very dangerous to our health.

At risk groups

Older women are generally linked to the bone condition far more than younger people and men. But it is a disease that can affect the young and men too, although we’re more likely to get it if we’re female due to a drop in hormones at menopause that protect our bones. We lose BMD naturally as we age, but if we have a genetic predisposition for the condition, or we drink alcohol excessively, smoke, or have low calcium or Vitamin D levels then we may also be at risk. Medications that interfere with our natural hormone balance, like steroids or some used for cancer, can also affect our BMD. If we’re at risk of getting the disease, or we’re diagnosed with it then we may be prescribed bone building medication like bisphosphonates, as well as calcium and Vitamin D supplements.