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Osteoporosis is a disease that affects your bones. It causes bones to
become thin, weak and porous. The result is that they break very easily, especially in the hip, wrist and
spine. The result of fractures and weakened bones can lead to pain, long-term disability, reduced mobility
and loss of height.
In Canada one in four women and at least one in eight men over the age of 50 suffers from
osteoporosis1 - it is estimated that up to two million Canadians have osteoporosis, based on 2006
Statistics Canada population data.2 The table below provides the estimated number of individuals
with osteoporosis in each province and territory.
| Province/Territory |
Estimated Number of Individuals with
Osteoporosis* |
| BC |
272,000
|
| AB |
173,500
|
| SK |
61,500
|
| MB |
71,000
|
| ON |
720,000
|
| QC |
504,000
|
| NB |
50,000
|
| NS |
63,400
|
| PE |
9,200
|
| NL |
35,000
|
| YT |
1,600
|
| NT |
1,600
|
| NU |
700
|
*Numbers derived based on 1 in 4 women and 1 in 8 men over the age of 50 using 2006 Statistics Canada
Population data. Based on an aging population, these numbers are expected to increase.
Over 80 per cent of all fractures in people over the age of 60 are osteoporosis related, yet less than 38 per
cent of fracture patients undergo diagnosis or adequate treatment for osteoporosis.3
Over 20 per cent of individuals who suffer a hip fracture related to osteoporosis die within 12
months.4
Men are at greater risk of death than women following a hip fracture – more than 39 per cent of women and 52
per cent of men were either deceased or institutionalized within two years of a hip fracture.5
According to the findings of a Canadian study of 18 different health conditions, hip and vertebral (spine)
fractures were among the top three conditions associated with extended hospital stays and substantial health
care costs.6 The study found that a hip fracture patient who returns home after hospitalization
costs the health care system in excess of $21,000 in direct costs, while a patient who must be
institutionalized costs more than twice as much, over $44,000.7 The cost of treating osteoporosis
and the fractures it causes is estimated to be more than $1.3 billion each year.8
Osteoporosis is not an inevitable part of aging. With appropriate lifestyle changes, and medication if
necessary, an individual can lead an active, fulfilled life after a diagnosis of osteoporosis.
1Hanley DA, Josse RG. Prevention and management of
osteoporosis: consensus statements from the Scientific Advisory Board of the Osteoporosis Society of
Canada. Can Med Assoc
J. 1996;155:921-3.
2 Estimate based on 1 in 4 women and 1 in 8 men, and 2006
population data.
3 Elliot-Gibson V, Bogoch ER, Jamal
SA, Beaton DE . Practice
patterns in the diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis after a fragility fracture: a systematic
review. Osteoporosis
Int. 2004;15:767-78.
4 Haleem S, Lutchman L, Mayahi R, Grice JE, Parker MJ.
Mortality following hip fracture: trends and geographical variations over the last 40 years. Injury. 2008;39:1157-63.
5 Fransen M, Woodward M, Norton R, Robinson E,
Butler M, Campbell AJ. Excess
mortality or institutionalization after hip fracture: men are at greater risk than women.
J Am Geriatr Soc. 2002;4:685-90.
6 Papaioannou A, Adachi JD, Parkinson W, Stephenson G,
Bédard M. Lengthy hospitalization associated with vertebral fractures despite control for comorbid
conditions. Osteoporosis
Int. 2001;12:870-4.
7 Wiktorowicz ME, Goeree R, Papaioannou A, Adachi JD,
Papadimitropoulos E. Economic implications of hip fracture:health service use, institutional care and cost in
Canada . Osteoporosis Int. 2001;12:271-8.
8 Goeree R, O’Brien B, Pettitt D, Cuddy L, Ferraz M,
Adachi J. An assessment of the burden of illness due to osteoporosis in Canada
. J Soc Obstet Gynaecol Can. 1996;18(suppl
July):15-24
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