What is Osteoporosis?
Osteoporosis, is a chronic, progressive disease it literally means ‘porous bones’. It is characterised by low bone mass and microarchitectural deterioration of bone tissue which makes the bone fragile and increased risk of breaks.
Oseoporosis usually affectsthe whole skeleton but it most commonly causes breaks (fractures) to bones in the wrist, spine and hip.
- 1 in 3 women and 1 in 12 men in the uk will have Osteoporosis over the age of 50
- An estimated 3 million people in the UK suffer from Osteoporosis
- Each year in the UK, Oseoporosis causes:
- 70,000 hip fractures
- 50,000 wrist fractures
- 120,000 spine fratures
Risk Factors
While everyone is potentially at risk because of natural bone loss that occurs as we get older, there are some factors that can increase the risk:
- Lack of oestrogen for women
- Low levels of testosterone in men
- Family history of Osteoporosis
- Diet low in calcium
- Smoking
- Excessive alcohol intake
- Inactive lifestyle
- Long term use of high dose corticosteroid tablets (for conditions such as arthritis and asthma)
- Malabsorption problems (Coeliac disease, Crohn’s disease, gastric surgery)
Testing for Osteoporosis.
While a bone density scan is the traditional way of diagnosing established osteoporosis, knowing who are ‘fast’ bone losers is a key to preventative treatment and the NTx test is highly predictive for the onset of osteoporosis.
How does the test work?
The CNS Osteoporosis Screen provides a measure of the excretion of N-telopeptide (NTx), a very specific maker of bone metabolism. Collagen is one of the proteins that holds bones together. The telopeptide link and stabilise collagen molecules, but as bone breaks down, telepeptide is excreted into the urine. Urinary levels of NTx therefore correlate with the rate of bone loss. When there are increased amounts of NTx in the urine, there is an increased rate of bone destruction. The test is a very specific biochemical marker for bone loss and is unaffected by diet.
Sample requirements and test turnaround.
Only a small urine sample is required. Results are available within 10 working days.