[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/osteopenia\/difference-between-osteopenia-and-osteoporosis\/#Article","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/osteopenia\/difference-between-osteopenia-and-osteoporosis\/","headline":"What is the difference between osteopenia and osteoporosis?","name":"What is the difference between osteopenia and osteoporosis?","description":"Print PDF eBook Facebook Twitter Gmail LinkedIn Pinterest Some clients come to me wondering about the difference between osteopenia and osteoporosis. Often, they have just been told that their \u201cdiagnosis\u201d of osteopenia means they need bone drugs to prevent a life-altering fracture. I’m not surprised by their confusion, because most physicians are just as confused […]","datePublished":"2018-08-30","dateModified":"2021-02-21","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/author\/brownbetterbonesgmail-com\/#Person","name":"Dr. Susan E. Brown, PhD","url":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/author\/brownbetterbonesgmail-com\/","identifier":72,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8e08d87bd45250c6616e1752933a6576aba077f335d97ee337a0cde5e435cbd3?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8e08d87bd45250c6616e1752933a6576aba077f335d97ee337a0cde5e435cbd3?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Center for Better Bones","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Better-Bones-AMP.png","url":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/Better-Bones-AMP.png","width":150,"height":60}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/image.png","url":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/image.png","height":1109,"width":2120},"url":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/osteopenia\/difference-between-osteopenia-and-osteoporosis\/","about":["Osteopenia"],"wordCount":778,"keywords":["osteopenia"],"articleBody":" Print PDF eBook\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFacebook\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTwitter\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGmail\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLinkedIn\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPinterest\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSome clients come to me wondering about the difference between osteopenia and osteoporosis. Often, they have just been told that their \u201cdiagnosis\u201d of osteopenia means they need bone drugs to prevent a life-altering fracture.I’m not surprised by their confusion, because most physicians are just as confused when it comes to fracture risk. But the evidence is clear: osteoporosis and osteopenia are not the same thing, and their risk of fractures is not the same either.Here is the difference osteopenia and osteoporosis, in a nutshell:Osteoporosis suggests a disease process; osteopenia is a description of lowered bone density.\u00a0When you have a diagnosis of osteoporosis, it means you have an actual disorder that can be seen under a microscope. The word \u201costeoporosis\u201d means \u201cporous bone,\u201d and a close look at the bones of someone with osteoporosis shows the bones are more like Swiss cheese than the spongy appearance of healthy bone.Osteoporosis is not a normal response to aging, but is indicative of\u00a0 long-term imbalances which culminate in a\u00a0bone weakening disease process.Osteopenia, on the other hand, is not a diagnosis. It\u2019s a description. This is a key difference between osteopenia and osteoporosis. The word “osteopenia” means \u201clow bone mass\u201d\u2014and all it\u2019s really doing is stating an observation that your bone mass is lower than that of a woman in her late 20s\u2014someone at the peak of their bone-building and strength.I\u2019m always tempted to roll my eyes and say \u201cWell, of course!\u201d \u2014 because just as you might expect a 55-year-old woman\u2019s hair to be a little grayer than a 25-year-old\u2019s, it\u2019s realistic to expect her bones wouldn\u2019t be as dense as those of a woman 30 years younger.Osteoporosis warrants an extensive work-up looking for causes of excessive bone loss. Osteopenia\u00a0 may or may not be an early warning sign of bone weakening and generally does not trigger the need for a work-up or conventional medical treatment — with some exceptions.Since osteoporosis is a disease process with a lot of potential factors, a diagnosis of osteoporosis should initiate a full work-up.Osteopenia, however, is not a diagnosis nor a\u00a0disease and often, in fact, is the result of statistics.\u00a0\u00a0Because bone density testing \u201cT scores\u201d represent a statistical calculation — by statistical definition, 15% of healthy young people will be told they have osteopenia.\u00a0Most often these are small boned, light weight individuals.\u00a0In these cases having \u201costeopenia\u201d is simply a product of an individual\u2019s general body type and more a statistical artifact testing bias than anything to do with their actual bone health.\u00a0When is osteopenia something to take seriously?Since women\u2019s peak bone mass occurs in their late 20s, it stands to reason that some amount of bone loss takes place throughout the subsequent decades. Whether or not slipping into \u201costeopenic\u201d bone density range is a serious concern depends on the individual case.\u00a0This is where we find the proverbial devil hiding in the details. Here\u2019s how this goes…\u00a0At the Center for Better Bones, our developing\u00a0clinical findings have discovered different \u201ctypes\u201d of osteopenia \u2014 some being more troublesome than others. For now let me mention a few key factors that distinguish a harmless finding of osteopenia from one that may well signal serious bone weakening:Finding \u201costeopenia\u201d in a bone scan becomes concerning if subsequent scans reveal rapid and excessive bone loss,\u00a0such as more than 2% a year loss during the menopause transition, and more than .05 to 1 % a year loss from 5 years after menopause and onwards.\u00a0 On-going excessive bone loss signals that one is on the road to osteoporosis.Osteopenia found in those whose parent(s) have fractured a hip. A hip fracture could be an early red flag of future bone fragility. It warrants follow-up to find out whether this individual herself is losing bone, and if so, how rapid is the loss.\u00a0Entering menopause with osteopenia is a concern as the average woman loses 10% of her bone mass between the first few years before and the first five years after her last period. Some women lose up to 20% in this transition.\u00a0Starting the menopause transition with lower than normal bone mass signals the need for a life-supporting, bone-preseving program.Anyone with osteopenia who has experienced a low-trauma fracture has\u00a0documented bone weakness and would do well to take their \u201costeopenia\u201d seriously by implementing a bone building lifestyle and nutrition program.To conclude, let me say that the limitations of bone density testing are now clear. Amongst other things, it is now obvious you cannot foretell fracture by bone density alone.  "},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Osteopenia","item":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/osteopenia\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"What is the difference between osteopenia and osteoporosis?","item":"https:\/\/betterbones.com\/osteopenia\/difference-between-osteopenia-and-osteoporosis\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]