From the Popular Press: What Your Patients are Reading:

The American College of Physicians (ACP) has developed a new clinical guideline on osteoporosis screening in men. The new screening guideline is designed to combat the 50% increase over the next 15 years of osteoporosis cases in men that has been predicted. Osteoporotic fractures can lead to disease and possibly death, with men being twice as likely as women to die within 1 year of suffering a hip fracture. The ACP guideline calls for regular screening of men over the age of 65 for osteoporosis, as well as DEXA (dual energy X-ray absorptiometry) scans for high-risk patients. Osteoporosis risk factors for men include older age, low body weight, weight loss, physical inactivity, previous fractures (excluding those caused by substantial trauma), low calcium levels, and ongoing use of drugs with bone-thinning side effects, such as corticosteroids or some prostate drugs. Currently, the National Osteoporosis Foundation recommends men begin receiving bone mineral density tests at the age of 70.

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