Osteoporosis
New joint lubrication technique for people with arthritis
A new way of lubricating arthritic joints has been developed in the US – one that mimics one of the body’s natural functions, a team reports in Nature Materials.
Scientists have been able to bind a molecule naturally found in the fluid surrounding healthy joints, creating surfaces that can deliver long-lasting lubrication at specific spots throughout the body. Continue reading
Bone drugs may not protect women with osteoporosis from breast cancer after all
Osteoporosis drugs – known as bisphosphonates – may not protect women from breast cancer as was previously thought, highlights research published in JAMA Internal Medicine. The new analysis of clinical trial data suggests that earlier evidence was misleading.
Several observational studies showed that women who took bisphosphonates were less likely to get breast cancer. But when researchers assessed the effect of two of the most widely used osteoporosis drugs – Fosamax and Reclast – in two large trials (involving a total of 14,224 women), neither drug protected women with osteoporosis from getting breast cancer. Continue reading
Don’t use testosterone measures to assess bone fragility in men who have factures. New research finding
Testosterone fluctuations associated with acute fractures could interfere with current methods of checking for bone weaknesses in men, according to research published in Osteoporosis International.
A total of 240 men with trauma fractures were compared to 89 men of the same age without fractures.
Men with fractures tended to have lower testosterone readings than the control group, especially those being treated as inpatients. And after six months, 43% of the men originally categorised as having low testosterone were found to have acceptable levels of the hormone, suggesting the effect may be temporary. Continue reading
Vitamin D levels and bone mass in rheumatoid arthritis
Previous evidence suggests an association between vitamin D deficiency and autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis. We also know that people with rheumatoid arthritis are at increased risk for osteoporosis. So a team of experts looked at levels of vitamin D in the blood, bone mineral density and disease activity in 34 women, who they compared to 41 healthy women.
They found that women with rheumatoid arthritis had lower levels of vitamin D than the healthy women, and report their findings in Rheumatology International. Continue reading
Bone marrow lesions play a part in osteoarthritis pain
Bone marrow lesions (areas of bone damage) cause pain for those with osteoarthritis, a study confirms in Arthritis Research & Therapy.
Out of the 198 people involved in the study, 109 were the adult children of people who had a knee replacement while the other 89 were community-based control subjects. Knee pain and bone marrow lesion size were assessed at two and 10-year visits. Continue reading
