Breaking a bone causes bone density losses throughout the body, not just close to the site of the fracture, and primarily around the time of the fracture, two new studies from UC Davis Health show.
Breaking a bone causes bone density losses throughout the body, not just close to the site of the fracture, and primarily around the time of the fracture, two new studies from UC Davis Health show.
The studies are among the first to associate fractures with systemic bone loss. They also begin the path to finding treatments that preserve long-term skeletal health and reduce susceptibility to additional fractures and, potentially, osteoporosis, which is diagnosed when bone-density losses are severe.
Both investigations were led by Blaine Christiansen, whose research focuses on identifying changes in musculoskeletal tissue due to injury, aging or disease.
“We know one fracture seems to lead to others, but we haven’t known why,” said Christiansen, associate professor of orthopaedic surgery at UC Davis. “Our work is the first step on the path to identifying the cellular mechanisms of systemic bone loss.”
Read more at University of California - Davis Health System
Image: Blaine Christiansen and his lab team are on the path to finding therapies that reduce bone losses following fractures. Pictured (top to bottom on the left) are Christiansen, Armaun Emami, Hailey Cunningham and (right) Allison Hsia. (Credit: Copyright UC Regents courtesy of UC Davis Health)
