Osteoporosis Clinical Center and Research Program
Osteoporosis was once thought to be an inevitable result of getting old. However, it is now recognized to be a treatable disease that can often be prevented. It affects about 20-25 million Americans and is more common in women. Approximately 50% of Caucasian women and 25% of Caucasian men will have an osteoporotic fracture sometime during their life. Treatment related to these fractures costs approximately $14 billion annually in the United States; a cost projected to exceed $60 billion by the year 2030. Studies are being conducted to evaluate ways to improve diagnosis and treatment and to assess the role that nutrition may play in the development, treatment, and prevention of osteoporosis. This program is led by Neil Binkley, M.D., Associate Director of the Institute on Aging.
