Assesment of osteoporotic fractures risk and osteoporosis prevalence among patients over 50 years old undergoing medical rehabilitation

Background. Back pain, limitation of mobility, spinal deformity, decreased ability to self-care due to osteoporotic fractures (vertebrae, femoral neck, humerus, etc.) are one of the reasons for referring patients to rehabilitation and rehabilitation treatment, which involves the use of physical therapy methods, physiotherapy exercises and mechanotherapy.

Objective: to assess the prevalence of osteoporosis (OP), individual risk factors for OP, as well as the proportion of people with high risk of osteoporotic low-energy fractures among patients over 50 years old undergoing treatment according to the “medical rehabilitation” profile.

Methods. The study group comprised of 600 patients (426 women and 174 men) aged 50 to 84 years, average age 64.25±10.17 years, undergoing treatment in a rehabilitation department. This was a cross-sectional study in the form of unified questionnaire, including data conserning age, weight, height, BMI, clinical and rehabilitation diagnosis, anamnesis of the main disease, anamnesis vitae, presence of OP diagnosis in the anamnesis, its treatment, OP risk factors estimation. An assessment of 10-year probability of osteoporotic fractures was carried out using Russian model of online FRAX^® calculator.

Results. 41.8% patients in the study sample had OP risk factors, including 31.2% ― 3 risk factors or more. 38% patients over 50 years old undergoing medical rehabilitation showed a high fracture risk according to the FRAX calculator. 34.1% had a diagnosis of OP stated, and 45.8% already had osteoporotic fractures. Among those who did not undergo densitometry examination, 69.9% had a history of low-traumatic fractures, and only 58.5% of patients with an established diagnosis of OP and 26.8% of those at high risk of fractures received effective therapy for OP.

Conclusion. Among patients over 50 years old undergoing medical rehabilitation a high frequency of OP and high fracture risk were stated. At the same time, insufficient quality of OP diagnostics and anti-osteoporotic therapy administaration were revealed.