Osteoporotic Fractures
How We Can Help You for Osteoporotic Fractures
The doctors in the Stanford Medicine Spine Center are leaders in the diagnosis and treatment of osteoporotic fractures. In this condition, osteoporosis – bone thinning and weakening – causes one or more bones to break, usually in the spine, but also sometimes in the hips and wrists.
We personalize a treatment plan to help relieve your symptoms – back pain is the most common. Our team also can guide you to the best diet and exercise for your condition. We can even help you and your family members take action to reduce the risk or lessen the impact of future osteoporotic fractures.
In addition, Stanford Medicine Spine Center patients with osteoporotic fractures may have opportunities to participate in research studies of new treatment approaches not yet available anywhere else.
What We Offer You For Osteoporotic Fractures
- Center of Excellence for advanced care of all spine-related conditions.
- Nationally recognized expertise in treating all types of osteoporotic fractures, no matter how complex.
- Precise diagnosis options including the latest imaging technology.
- Team-based treatment planning that brings together orthopaedic surgeons, neurologists and neurosurgeons, pain management specialists, rheumatologists, physiatrists, and others to tailor care to your needs.
- Advanced treatment options emphasizing noninvasive approaches whenever possible, including exercises and physical rehabilitation, plus medication therapy and, when needed, spine surgery.
- Comprehensive support services including care coordination from diagnosis to treatment to follow-up.
- Active research program to develop new diagnostic and treatment advances.
Osteoporotic Fractures
Many people with an osteoporotic fracture get better without treatment. Rest may be the only help needed. (But avoid excessive bedrest. It can make your bone loss worse.)
Putting a heating pad or ice pack over the area of a fracture may help.
Other cases of osteoporotic fractures, however, require additional action. Options include:
Half of all women and a quarter of all men over the age of 50 will experience an osteoporosis-related fracture at some point in their lifetime. 50 percent of these fractures are spinal fractures.
Healthy diet
It is important to make sure you get enough calcium and vitamin D for healthy bones.
One source of vitamin D is sunlight. Another is certain food. For example, salmon and other types of fish are excellent sources of vitamin D. So are egg yolks and mushrooms.
Milk is a good source of calcium; so are calcium-fortified foods such as certain cereals and orange juice.
Most calcium can come from your diet. But your doctor may recommend that you take a vitamin or supplement to make sure you get enough vitamin D and other vitamins and minerals.
Regular exercise
Your care team will help you plan a healthy exercise program.
The goals are overall strength and fitness, but especially strong load-bearing muscles plus good posture, flexibility, and balance.
- Strong load-bearing muscles help you lift, push, and pull objects without injuring your back.
- Good posture can help prevent your back from curving.
- Flexibility is essential so you can stay active and move with minimal stiffness.
- Good balance helps you guard against falls.
Risk reduction
In addition to exercises to help maintain or improve your balance, your care team can recommend other actions to help you reduce the risk of falls. In people with osteoporosis, falls increase the risk of fractures occurring or getting worse.
Other ways to reduce your risk of osteoporotic fractures include lifestyle changes. For example, if you smoke, talk with your care team about quitting.
Also, your doctor may advise you to reduce drinking alcohol, which can make your bones weaker and make you more prone to falls. Plus, alcohol may not mix well with any medications you may be taking.
Bracing
Doctors recommend that some people with an osteoporotic fracture wear a brace to help control pain, limit movement, and allow the fracture to heal.
Bracing also may be the treatment of choice for people who are high-risk and unable to safely have surgery.
The brace is designed to hold the spine straighter than usual, relieving pressure on the damaged bone and reducing the chance of further problems.
Your doctor may recommend that you wear a brace several months. However, excessive use of a brace can weaken trunk muscles. So, your doctor also may recommend that you add load-bearing muscle strengthening to your exercise program.
Pain medication
Treatment for painful fractures starts with over-the-counter pain relievers such as aspirin, acetaminophen (Tylenol, for example), or ibuprofen (such as Advil or Motrin).
In cases of severe pain, your doctor may recommend short-term bedrest and prescription pain relievers.
Surgical treatment
If less invasive treatment approaches aren’t effective, your doctor may recommend surgery. Two of the most common surgical procedures for osteoporotic fractures are vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty.
Vertebroplasty
We use a needle to inject a special cement into bones. When the cement hardens, it helps keep a fracture stable.
Vertebroplasty is usually an outpatient procedure. Most people go home the same day. But, in some cases, your doctor may recommend that you stay in the hospital overnight for observation.
Most people who have a vertebroplasty experience significant pain relief within 24 hours.
Kyphoplasty
Using an x-ray to help guide us, we insert a needle into the fractured bone.
Then, we insert a small balloon through the needle. When inflated, the balloon helps the bone regain its normal position and shape. We fill the space with bone cement to make it strong.
After the surgery, doctors advise most patients that they can return to their normal daily activities as soon as possible.
Screening
Many doctors recommend that all women over age 65 and all men over age 70 be screened for osteoporosis.
In addition, screening may be recommended for postmenopausal women younger than 65 if they have 1 or more risk factors. Men between the ages of 50 and 70 who have 1 or more additional risk factors also should be considered candidates for screening.
Clinical Trials
Clinical trials are research studies that evaluate a new medical approach, device, drug, or other treatment. As a Stanford Health Care patient, you may have access to the latest clinical trials.
Open trials refer to studies that are currently recruiting participants or that may recruit participants in the near future. Closed trials are not currently enrolling, but similar studies may open in the future.
What are Osteoporotic Fractures?
Osteoporotic fractures are bone breaks resulting from osteoporosis, a condition in which bones become weaker and more fragile due to low bone mass (sometimes called “thin bones”).
Low bone mass may result from:
- Genetics: Heredity may make some people more likely than others to get osteoporosis
- Gender: Significantly more women than men have osteoporosis
- Lack of exercise
- Poor diet
Bones that are weaker or more fragile are at greater risk for fractures. Osteoporotic fractures occur most commonly in the spine but also can occur in the hip or wrist. Bone loss can occur without any symptoms, until the fracture actually occurs. Even minor trauma – a strain, bump, or fall – may result in an osteoporotic fracture.
About 10 million Americans have osteoporosis. Another 34 million individuals over the age of 50 are at risk of developing osteoporosis. Although 80% of the people with osteoporosis are older women, the condition also can occur in men and at any age.
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