Back to Florida Medical Clinic
Florida Medical Orthopaedics, Sports Medicine & Spine can help diagnose and treat osteoporosis and the complications it can cause. This condition is characterized by the reduction in bone density, making them more likely to break. Although the bones become more fragile, people affected by this condition typically are unaware until they break a bone or notice that they’re getting shorter. Some people notice a dull ache in their joints as the only indication that their bones are weakening. In more severe cases, the complications from osteoporosis can be cause for hip or knee surgery.
Understanding Osteoporosis
Some of the factors than can increase someone’s risk of developing osteoporosis include:
- Having a family history of the disease
- Eating a diet low in calcium or having other nutritional deficiencies
- Being female, especially over the age of 65
- Being of Caucasian or Asian ethnicity
- Using tobacco products
- Drinking alcohol excessively
This “silent disease” can be detected through bone mineral density (BMD) tests before fractures occur. Although osteoporosis can’t be cured, it can be prevented or slowed through weight-bearing exercise, adding vitamin D and calcium to the diet, and potentially taking medications to help increase bone density.
In the case of people who have experienced bone fractures due to osteoporosis, expert care is required to help rehabilitate. Florida Medical Orthopaedics, Sports Medicine & Spine’s Stephen Raterman, MD, can help people who have knee and hip damage related to or compounded by osteoporosis. Dr. Raterman performs minimally invasive hip and knee joint replacements, as well as other surgical procedures, such as arthroscopic joint surgery, and Birmingham hip resurfacing (BHR) procedures.
To learn more about the surgical procedures that Dr. Raterman offers for people affected by osteoporosis and other conditions that can negatively impact the shoulder, knee, or hip, contact Florida Medical Orthopaedics, Sports Medicine & Spine today.
Proudly serving Wiregrass/Wesley Chapel, Tampa, Brandon, and Zephyrhills FL