Did You Know Smoking Is Bad For Your Bones?
21/05/11 08:36
According to the most recent statistics from American Lung Association and the Center for Disease Control (CDC), over 430,000 people die each year as a result of smoking-related diseases. According to the American Lung Association, cigarette smoking leads to 87% of lung cancers, emphysema and chronic bronchitis.
Smoking is known to cause:
• Heart disease
• Lung cancer
• Esophageal cancer
• Chronic lung disease
But there is one more thing: smoking is also bad for your bones!
Bones, like other tissues and organs of your body, get their nutrition from good blood flow. Normally, when a bone is injured (i.e. fractured), blood flow brings in the desperately needed nutrients to help heal the bone. Smokers tend to have an elevated level of nicotine in their blood, which constricts blood vessels. This leads to decreased blood flow, resulting in impaired delivery of oxygen and other nutrients.
Thus, when the bone of a smoker is injured, healing is compromised.
With the impaired nutrition to the bones, bone density becomes affected and this can also lead to osteoporosis.
Low Back Pain and Smoking
If you are a smoker and suffer from low back pain, you are not alone. The idea that smoking may be linked with low back pain has been around for quite some time. The key culprit here is nicotine, which limits blood flow throughout the body, including the spine. Chronic oxygen deprivation causes the discs to weaken. The result is malnourished and degenerated discs, which lead to pain. As a chronic smoker, the more you cough, the more you irritate the discs, which results in more low back pain.
If you are considering a fusion surgery, your doctor will ask you if you smoke. This is important because nicotine damages the “bone building cells”. In extreme cases, a surgeon may refuse to operate if the patient is a chronic smoker, since smoking slows down healing after spinal surgery.
Smoking is known to cause:
• Heart disease
• Lung cancer
• Esophageal cancer
• Chronic lung disease
But there is one more thing: smoking is also bad for your bones!
Bones, like other tissues and organs of your body, get their nutrition from good blood flow. Normally, when a bone is injured (i.e. fractured), blood flow brings in the desperately needed nutrients to help heal the bone. Smokers tend to have an elevated level of nicotine in their blood, which constricts blood vessels. This leads to decreased blood flow, resulting in impaired delivery of oxygen and other nutrients.
Thus, when the bone of a smoker is injured, healing is compromised.
With the impaired nutrition to the bones, bone density becomes affected and this can also lead to osteoporosis.
Low Back Pain and Smoking
If you are a smoker and suffer from low back pain, you are not alone. The idea that smoking may be linked with low back pain has been around for quite some time. The key culprit here is nicotine, which limits blood flow throughout the body, including the spine. Chronic oxygen deprivation causes the discs to weaken. The result is malnourished and degenerated discs, which lead to pain. As a chronic smoker, the more you cough, the more you irritate the discs, which results in more low back pain.
If you are considering a fusion surgery, your doctor will ask you if you smoke. This is important because nicotine damages the “bone building cells”. In extreme cases, a surgeon may refuse to operate if the patient is a chronic smoker, since smoking slows down healing after spinal surgery.
0 Comments
Osteopenia VS. Osteoporosis: What's the Difference?
04/03/11 09:23
What is osteopenia and how is it related to osteoporosis? To begin to answer that question, we must define osteopenia. Osteopenia is the thinning of bone mass. While this decrease in bone mass is not usually considered "severe", it is considered a very serious risk factor for the development of osteoporosis. Osteopenia is commonly seen in people over age 50 that have lower than average bone density but do not have osteoporosis. The diagnostic difference between osteopenia and osteoporosis is the measure of bone mineral density.
Bone mineral density
Bone mineral density (BMD) is the measurement of calcium levels in bones, which can estimate the risk of bone fractures. It is also used to determine if a patient has osteopenia or osteoporosis. Bone mineral density tests are non-invasive and painless procedures usually done on the hip, spine, wrist, finger, shin bone, or heel.
While osteopenia can be diagnosed using plain radiographs, the most common method for measuring BMD (and a way to definitively diagnose osteoporosis) is through Dual Energy X-ray Absorptiometry or DEXA. This scan uses low-energy x-rays that expose patients to much less radiation than standard x-rays and can assess calcium levels in bone. The results are measured as a "score" and are compared to those of healthy individuals.
What the numbers mean
A patient's BMD is given a T-score, which is derived by comparing it to an average score for a healthy 30-year-old of the same sex and race. The difference between the "normal young" score and the patient's score is referred to as a standard deviation (SD). T-scores can fall as low as -1 SD and still be considered healthy (see table below). Patients with T-scores between -1 SD and -2.5 SD are diagnosed with osteopenia and are considered at high risk for osteoporosis. Patients with T-scores lower than -2.5 SD are diagnosed with osteoporosis.
For these patients, treatment is usually necessary and includes the use of medications to help increase bone mass, as well as lifestyle changes such as diet and exercise.
T-score
2.5 to -1 SD
Normal bone density
Between -1 and -2.5
Osteopenia (low bone density)
Below -2.5
Osteoporosis
Who is at risk?
Not everyone will get osteopenia or osteoporosis. However there are certain risk factors that can increase the likelihood that a person will have moderate to severe loss of bone mass, including the following:
Gender - women are a higher risk because they have less bone mass than men. Women also often experience a loss of bone
mass after menopause.
Race - Asian and Caucasian women, especially those who are small-boned, are at highest risk.
Family history - patients with a family history of low bone mass have a 50%-85% increased risk of developing osteoporosis.
Age - most people (men and women) lose about .5% of bone mass every year after the age of 50.
Lifestyle choices - including poor diet with a lack of calcium and vitamin D, smoking, excessive use of alcohol or caffeine, and
lack of exercise contribute to a loss of bone mass.
Other medical conditions - such as hyperthyroidism, hyperparathyroidism, and Cushing's syndrome, can contribute to bone loss.
Certain medications (such as prednisone or phenytoin (Dilantin®
, are known to cause bone loss as well.
Prevention
While most people experience some loss of bone mass as they age, osteopenia and osteoporosis are not inevitable parts of the aging process. There are things that can be done to keep bones healthy, including the following:
1. Maintain a healthy diet with adequate amounts of calcium, magnesium, vitamins D, K, and C as well as other minerals.
2. Regular physical activity that includes weight bearing exercises, such as low-impact aerobics, jogging, and walking to help
minimize bone loss.
3. Avoidance of smoking and excessive use of alcohol.
4. Regular check-ups with a physician to monitor bone loss, especially in people over age 50.
5. Use of medications to help improve bone health if deficiencies in bone mass are detected.
What you can do
Along with eating right and getting regular exercise, talk to your doctor about having your bone mineral density measured, especially if you are over the age of 50 or fall into one of the higher risk groups mentioned above.
Original article: http://www.spineuniverse.com/conditions/osteoporosis/osteopenia-osteoporosis-there-difference
Bone mineral density
Bone mineral density (BMD) is the measurement of calcium levels in bones, which can estimate the risk of bone fractures. It is also used to determine if a patient has osteopenia or osteoporosis. Bone mineral density tests are non-invasive and painless procedures usually done on the hip, spine, wrist, finger, shin bone, or heel.
While osteopenia can be diagnosed using plain radiographs, the most common method for measuring BMD (and a way to definitively diagnose osteoporosis) is through Dual Energy X-ray Absorptiometry or DEXA. This scan uses low-energy x-rays that expose patients to much less radiation than standard x-rays and can assess calcium levels in bone. The results are measured as a "score" and are compared to those of healthy individuals.
What the numbers mean
A patient's BMD is given a T-score, which is derived by comparing it to an average score for a healthy 30-year-old of the same sex and race. The difference between the "normal young" score and the patient's score is referred to as a standard deviation (SD). T-scores can fall as low as -1 SD and still be considered healthy (see table below). Patients with T-scores between -1 SD and -2.5 SD are diagnosed with osteopenia and are considered at high risk for osteoporosis. Patients with T-scores lower than -2.5 SD are diagnosed with osteoporosis.
For these patients, treatment is usually necessary and includes the use of medications to help increase bone mass, as well as lifestyle changes such as diet and exercise.
T-score
2.5 to -1 SD
Normal bone density
Between -1 and -2.5
Osteopenia (low bone density)
Below -2.5
Osteoporosis
Who is at risk?
Not everyone will get osteopenia or osteoporosis. However there are certain risk factors that can increase the likelihood that a person will have moderate to severe loss of bone mass, including the following:
Gender - women are a higher risk because they have less bone mass than men. Women also often experience a loss of bone
mass after menopause.
Race - Asian and Caucasian women, especially those who are small-boned, are at highest risk.
Family history - patients with a family history of low bone mass have a 50%-85% increased risk of developing osteoporosis.
Age - most people (men and women) lose about .5% of bone mass every year after the age of 50.
Lifestyle choices - including poor diet with a lack of calcium and vitamin D, smoking, excessive use of alcohol or caffeine, and
lack of exercise contribute to a loss of bone mass.
Other medical conditions - such as hyperthyroidism, hyperparathyroidism, and Cushing's syndrome, can contribute to bone loss.
Certain medications (such as prednisone or phenytoin (Dilantin®
, are known to cause bone loss as well.Prevention
While most people experience some loss of bone mass as they age, osteopenia and osteoporosis are not inevitable parts of the aging process. There are things that can be done to keep bones healthy, including the following:
1. Maintain a healthy diet with adequate amounts of calcium, magnesium, vitamins D, K, and C as well as other minerals.
2. Regular physical activity that includes weight bearing exercises, such as low-impact aerobics, jogging, and walking to help
minimize bone loss.
3. Avoidance of smoking and excessive use of alcohol.
4. Regular check-ups with a physician to monitor bone loss, especially in people over age 50.
5. Use of medications to help improve bone health if deficiencies in bone mass are detected.
What you can do
Along with eating right and getting regular exercise, talk to your doctor about having your bone mineral density measured, especially if you are over the age of 50 or fall into one of the higher risk groups mentioned above.
Original article: http://www.spineuniverse.com/conditions/osteoporosis/osteopenia-osteoporosis-there-difference
Osteoporosis and How to Tell if You Have it
22/12/10 08:07
According to Medicinenet.com, Osteoporosis is a condition characterized by a decrease in the density of bone, decreasing its strength and resulting in fragile bones. Osteoporosis literally leads to abnormally porous bone that is compressible, like a sponge. This disorder of the skeleton weakens the bone and results in frequent fractures (breaks) in the bones.
Determining Factors:
Original article: http://www.medicinenet.com/osteoporosis/page3.htm
Determining Factors:
- Female gender
- Caucasian or Asian race
- Thin and small body frame
- Family history of osteoporosis (for example, having a mother with an osteoporotic hip fracture doubles your risk of hip fracture)
- Personal history of fracture as an adult
- Cigarette smoking
- Excessive alcohol consumption
- Lack of exercise
- Diet low in calcium
- Poor nutrition and poor general health
- Malabsorption (nutrients are not properly absorbed from the gastrointestinal system) from conditions such as celiac sprue
- Low estrogen levels in women (such as occur in menopause or with early surgical removal of both ovaries)
- Low testosterone levels in men (hypogonadism)
- Chemotherapy that can cause early menopause due to its toxic effects on the ovaries
- Amenorrhea (loss of the menstrual period) in young women associated with low estrogen and osteoporosis; amenorrhea can occur in women who undergo extremely vigorous exercise training and in women with very low body fat, for example, women with anorexia nervosa
- Chronic inflammation, due to chronic diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis or liver diseases
- Immobility, such as after a stroke, or from any condition that interferes with walking
Original article: http://www.medicinenet.com/osteoporosis/page3.htm
Link Between Osteoporosis and Hip Fracture
10/12/10 08:35
A new report says there is a clearer association between a rare form of thigh-bone fractures and long-term use of a class of bone–strengthening drugs called bisphosphonates- more commonly known by such brand names as Fosamax, Actonel, and Boniva.
Doctors said patients should still use the drugs -- they still appear to prevent other, much more common fractures. But the report recommended the U.S. Food and Drug Administration rewrite the drugs' labels to warn doctors and patients about the possibility of femur fractures.
While the group said it is still unclear whether bisphosphonates actually cause fractures, the group also recommended that the FDA create an international registry to track reported cases better.
The American Society of Bone and Mineral Research task force looked at reports on 310 osteoporosis patients who reported a rare form of femur fracture, and found that 94 percent of patients had been taking one of the drugs.
“Based on the report we now feel that there is a definitive relationship between these class of drugs and these fractures, and it's even stronger in those taking those drugs for a long time," said Dr. Elizabeth Shane, a professor of medicine at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and co-author of the report.
For more information and original article:
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/WomensHealth/task-force-cites-stronger-bisphosphonate-fracture-link/story?id=11633302
Doctors said patients should still use the drugs -- they still appear to prevent other, much more common fractures. But the report recommended the U.S. Food and Drug Administration rewrite the drugs' labels to warn doctors and patients about the possibility of femur fractures.
While the group said it is still unclear whether bisphosphonates actually cause fractures, the group also recommended that the FDA create an international registry to track reported cases better.
The American Society of Bone and Mineral Research task force looked at reports on 310 osteoporosis patients who reported a rare form of femur fracture, and found that 94 percent of patients had been taking one of the drugs.
“Based on the report we now feel that there is a definitive relationship between these class of drugs and these fractures, and it's even stronger in those taking those drugs for a long time," said Dr. Elizabeth Shane, a professor of medicine at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and co-author of the report.
For more information and original article:
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/WomensHealth/task-force-cites-stronger-bisphosphonate-fracture-link/story?id=11633302
Strength Training to Prevent Osteoporosis
02/11/10 09:18
People diagnosed with Osteoporosis often are under the impression that exercise or any strenuous activity can worsen their condition. That is 100% a myth! Weight bearing exercise, using 3-5 lb. dumbbells actually helps your bones. Depending on the severity, your physical therapist can give you exercises and methods for every day activities, such as learning how to lift and twist without putting pressure on your back and spine.
* For more information and complete article:
http://www.everydayhealth.com/osteoporosis/physical-therapy-for-osteoporosis.aspx
* For more information and complete article:
http://www.everydayhealth.com/osteoporosis/physical-therapy-for-osteoporosis.aspx
Physical Therapy Topics: Osteoporosis
07/12/09 19:51
| When bones start to go 'soft', it's time to face the hard truth. An insidious and silent disease, osteoporosis doesn’t manifest in the early stages. It has no signs or symptoms until a serious injury or fracture occurs. You may not know you have the disease until a small bump or fall causes you to break a bone. Osteoporosis is a condition in which bones lose calcium and become “porous”. This makes the bone more susceptible to breakage. Bone begins to break down quickly and does not regenerate at a sufficient pace. If you smoke cigarettes and are over 50 years of age, have a diet low in calcium, or are a woman with early menopause, your risk of osteoporosis increases. Why is it called silent? The physical manifestations of osteoporosis are not evident In the early stages. Sometimes, you may experience a dull bone or muscle pain in the low back or neck, which escalates to sharp, nagging pain lasting for months. As it progresses, bones become weaker, and your risk for a fracture increases. Bones in the wrist, hip, and spine are most commonly fractured in individuals with this disease. |
• Osteoporosis is a public health concern and affects more than 200 million individuals worldwide.
• About 85-90% of total bone mass is achieved by age 18 in girls and age 20 in boys.
• Think prevention: build strong bones from childhood. Preventive measures for kids can help prevent osteoporosis later in life.
• 80% of patients with osteoporosis are women. 20% are men.
• 1 out of every 2 women and 1 in 4 men over age 50 will break a bone in their lifetime due to osteoporosis.
• Osteoporosis can strike at any age. But, the older you are, the greater your risks.Those who are sedentary or on bed rest for a while have higher risks.
• Smoking or drinking alcohol excessively limits calcium absorption, which increases your risk for osteoporosis.
Prevention:
The key to keeping your bones healthy is: Eat right, exercise, and stop smoking and don’t drink alcohol excessively.
Nutrition is important: Proper intake of calcium and vitamin D help make your bones strong.
The case for exercise:
Exercise not only helps build muscle and endurance, it also builds and maintains bone density.
Two types of exercise for osteoporosis are:
• Weight-bearing in nature. These include walking, dancing, stair climbing depending on age and physical condition. Most experts recommend at least 30 minutes of moderate intensity 5 times /week.
• Resistance (this includes lifting weights). This has shown to increase bone mass and reduce risk of fractures.
As you age, concerns about performing the right types of exercise grow, especially if you already have osteoporosis, or at risk for it. If you’ve never been physically active, or have other concerns, you can choose from a range of safe exercise options prescribed by your therapist.
Guidelines for safe exercise:
• Talk to your physician and consult your therapist before beginning any exercise program. This is especially important if you know you have bone loss or osteoporosis.
• Avoid high-impact exercises (like running and jumping)- they put more stress on your spine, and may even lead to fractures in weakened bones.
• If you already have osteoporosis, be careful of exercises that involve bending and twisting at the waist. These motions can put brittle bones at risk.
Call us before choosing any of these activities to make sure you have an exercise plan that’s safe and effective for your bone health. Depending on your needs, we can create a program that combines postural strengthening, balance training and bone strengthening to provide you with an ideal, customized program. We know what it takes to build strong, healthy bones for individuals of all ages and look forward to working with you.
It's time for a solid decision to strengthen and shape your bones. Call or email us today for more information.
Distinctive Home Physical Therapy: Elderly Physical Therapy serving Nassau and Suffolk Long Island, and Queens NY