Osteoporosis in Men Is Undertreated and Overlooked

Multiple studies have found osteoporosis to be frequently overlooked as even a possibility in men, reports U.S. News & World Report . In one study, men aged 36 to 55 on average received failing scores on their total knowledge about the disease, their perceived vulnerability, and their beliefs about the seriousness of the condition. This may be partly due to the fact that "men are born with greater bone mass, and men do not have a menopause that gives them a large bone loss in the five years following the onset of menopause," notes Creighton University Professor Robert R. Recker. Experts also say health professionals should be more attentive to osteoporosis in men. "If a woman goes to the ER with a hip fracture, 49 percent of the time she will have some sort of follow-up with a doctor," says Ohio State University Professor Laura Ryan. Meanwhile, "men's likelihood of getting any sort of follow-up — to discuss the possibility of having osteoporosis, the need for bone density testing or medications — is less than 5 percent." Berkeley Madonna's Smita Nayak says there are unique risk factors for men, including low testosterone levels and use of androgen deprivation therapy for prostate cancer.