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Fracture Risk Higher for Seniors With Diabetes

Bone weaknesses seen in those with blood sugar disease

(*this news item will not be available after 12/19/2017)

By Robert Preidt
Wednesday, September 20, 2017

WEDNESDAY, Sept. 20, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Seniors with type 2 diabetes may be
at increased risk for fractures. And researchers think they know why.

"Fracture in older adults with type 2 diabetes is a highly important public health
problem and will only increase with the aging of the population and growing epidemic
of diabetes," said study author Dr. Elizabeth Samelson.

Samelson and her colleagues used special medical scans to assess more than 1,000 people over a three-year study
period. The investigators found that older adults with type 2 diabetes had bone weakness that cannot be measured
by standard bone density testing.

"Our ndings identify skeletal decits that may contribute to excess fracture risk in older adults with diabetes and
may ultimately lead to new approaches to improve prevention and treatment," said Samelson, of Hebrew SeniorLife's
Institute for Aging Research in Boston.

Fractures among seniors with osteoporosis -- the age-related bone-thinning disease -- are a major concern. Such
fractures can lead to decreased quality of life, disability and even death, as well as signicant health care costs, she
said in an institute news release.

Even those with normal or higher bone density than their peers appeared to have a higher fracture risk if they had
type 2 diabetes, the researchers said.

Specically, these people had a 40 percent to 50 percent increased risk of hip fracture, the ndings showed. This is
considered the most serious type of osteoporosis-related fracture.

The study authors said that better understanding of the various factors that inuence bone strength and fractures
will aid prevention efforts.

The report was published Sept. 20 in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research.
SOURCE: Hebrew SeniorLife's Institute for Aging Research, news release, Sept. 20, 2017

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Fractures [https://medlineplus.gov/alphanews_f.html#fractures]
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