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Osteoporosis is one of the most common diseases affecting women after menopause. The outcome of untreated osteoporosis is fractures. Spine fractures are the most common fracture, but hip, wrist, and many other bones may fracture.
Successful prevention of osteoporosis depends upon detection prior to the first fracture. Bone density testing is an important method for early detection, but it is not the only risk factor for osteoporosis. Also, it is often mistakenly considered to be a diagnostic test for osteoporosis, which it is not. Correct interpretation of bone density is best expressed as the absolute risk of fracture. Some experts prefer to express risk in terms of hip fracture only. The Medsurf algorithm expresses risk of any osteoporotic fracture, regardless of skeletal site.
Since the clinical goal is prevention of the first fracture, and since the first fracture is usually not at the hip, a case can be made for prediction of global fracture risk.
When the bone mineral density value is entered into MedSurf's Remaining Lifetime Fracture Probability (RLFP) service, the severity and future impact of a patient's osteoporosis risk can be quickly determined. Physicians can also see the impact of alternative treatment strategies.
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The graphic output is also meant to be a communication tool for patients. The current method of T-scores is not easily understood, and can be miscommunicated to patients. By making this treatment management tool available via the Internet, more physicians can interpret bone density tests in terms the patient can understand and can use the information to make better treatment decisions.
MedSurf treatment management tools are currently available FREE to physicians throughout the world. Simply click on the DEMO tab to try RLFP now, then click the SIGN-UP tab to activate your account. All account information is kept strictly private, and all risk reporting transactions are encrypted to deliver the world's highest level of trust using VeriSign for state-of-the-art SSL encryption.
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