[The pathology, diagnosis and therapy on osteoporosis]

The increase of elderly population in Japan suggests the importance of the prevention of osteoporotic fracture. Falls and fractures account for around 10% of the causes for requiring care services in Japan. The Japanese criteria for initiating pharmacological treatment to prevent fragility fracture were revised in 2011. There are many kinds of anti-osteoporosis drugs including bisphosphonates, SERM, teriparatide, and denosumab that have been proven to reduce fractures. Thus, it is important to select drugs appropriate for each osteoporotic patients considering the mechanisms of drug action, their efficacy and side effects. In this article, we review pathophysiology, diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis.