Bone Mineral Density in Symptomatic Patients with Comparison to Asymptomatic Patients

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate bone mineral density in symptomatic and asymptomatic patients.

Study design: Cross-sectional study.

Place and Duration of Study: Radiology Department, Pakistan Naval Ship, Shifa Hospital, Karachi Pakistan, from Aug 2017 to Aug 2019.

Methodology: The symptomatic individuals included in this study were those referred by a treating physician with complaints related to the skeletal system, such as bone pain. Asymptomatic individuals that were included were volunteers who had no symptoms related to bones. These individuals were evaluated by using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA).

Results: Five hundred twenty-nine individuals were included. Our study showed that the percentage of osteopenia and osteoporosis was 39.61% and 37% in symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals, respectively. These observations show that asymptomatic patients also suffer from osteopenia and osteoporosis. The percentage of asymptomatic patients suffering from osteopenia and osteoporosis was 2.0% and 35%, respectively.

Conclusion: The frequency of osteopenia and osteoporosis is increasing in symptomatic and asymptomatic patients in Pakistan. An alarming fact is that most of these positive asymptomatic patients are below 50 years.