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Osteoporosis in men has a different origin from women

A team of researchers at the Hospital del Mar and the Municipal Institute of Medical Research (IMIM) in Barcelona has succeeded in demonstrating for the first time that osteoporosis has a different origin in men and women.

STAFF | AUGUST 26 TH, 2010

Osteoporosis is a bone disease characterized by the loss of bone mineral density, which increases susceptibility to bone fractures. This is a very common disease among post-menopausal women, but we must not forget that it also affects men. In fact, it is more common than thought among the male population.

Until now, it was believed that men mainly suffered from secondary osteoporosis, i.e. that in males it was caused by the use of certain drugs or from ailments such as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and liver disease or due to certain toxic habits and alcohol consumption. However, 50% of the cases among men are primary or idiopathic, meaning they are not the result of another condition or disease.

The bone tissue of the human body is formed and destroyed continuously. When a person is healthy, there is a good balance between the formation and destruction of bone, and this allows the body to have adequate bone mineral density. However, in post-menopausal women, osteoporosis is caused by an increased rate of the destruction of bone tissue, while bone formation follows the same rhythm. The study’s findings represent a paradigm shift for osteoporosis and its treatment

What occurs in the case of male osteoporosis? We have seen that the disease is caused by a different mechanism from that of women. "Until now it was thought to be produced by the same mechanism in women, but we have seen that in men it is due to a lack of bone formation, while bone tissue is destroyed at the same rate between the female population. There are fewer osteoblasts (bone forming cells) and these are less active, "said Josep Blanch, rheumatologist at the Bone Metabolism Section of the Hospital del Mar’s Rheumatology Service and coordinator of the study. According to Blanch, the study's findings "represent a paradigm shift for osteoporosis and its treatment."

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