Experts Consider Osteoporosis to Be a Silent Epidemic Which Is Neglected and Under Addressed, According to New Survey Released Today

- Osteoporosis is estimated to affect 200 million people worldwide¹ and results in a fracture every 3 seconds² yet a new survey reveals bone specialists in Europe think its impact is not fully recognised³ 

- Specialists (82%) believe osteoporosis is a silent epidemic, yet only 24% believe their healthcare system is adequately prepared to support osteoporosis patients³

 - More than half (53%) of bone specialists think their patients believe that osteoporosis or fragility fractures will only impact them in the short term³, despite clear evidence of its long-term impact on quality of life and independence^4,5 

BRUSSELS, Sept. 20, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- A new European survey, released today by UCB, reveals that bone specialists believe osteoporosis and fragility fractures are neglected and under prioritized by their healthcare systems, and action needs to be taken.³ The survey, conducted in August 2019, asked 401 bone specialists from 11 European countries about their experience of osteoporosis and fragility fracture management.³

Of those surveyed, 66% agreed that osteoporosis is a neglected condition and only 10% of specialists surveyed agreed that osteoporosis and fragility fractures are currently given a high priority by their local health authority.³ When asked, the majority (90%) agreed that the condition should be a public health priority and 91% agreed that effective management can improve outcomes and reduce costs.³ At present, in women over 45 years of age, osteoporosis accounts for more days spent in hospital than many other diseases, including diabetes and breast cancer.⁶ In 2010, the cost of fragility fractures in the European Union was €37 billion⁷, and based on demographic changes is predicted to double by 2050.¹

"These results confirm what many of us already knew. Every year that goes by, more patients are potentially being denied effective management, leaving them vulnerable to life changing fractures. We need dedicated policy advisory groups to support national osteoporosis professionals and patient groups to implement effective approaches to bridge this prioritisation gap for policy makers, primary care and patients." commented Dr Kassim Javaid, Consultant Rheumatologist, University of Oxford. "While the ultimate step is to prevent the first fracture, co-ordinated post-fracture care services like the Fracture Liaison Service (FLS) has started to close the care gap, successful FLS models need to be expanded internationally. Once these systems are in place, FLSs can evolve to identify high risk groups to prevent the first fracture, our ultimate goal."