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Bone Metabolic Changes and Osteoporosis During Pregnancy and Lactation: A View from Dental Medicine
Mai Nishiura1,2, Haruhisa Watanabe1, Atsuko Nakanishi-Kimura1,3
1Department of Pharmacology, Faculty and Graduate School of Dental Medicine, Hokkaido University, Sapporo 060-8586, Japan.
Abstract:
Pregnancy- and lactation-associated osteoporosis (PLO) is receiving increasing attention. During pregnancy and lactation, bone metabolism is dramatically changed to supply minerals to the fetus and infant, which is a major cause of PLO. Weaning of lactation is clinically a primary choice to treat lactation-induced osteoporosis since breastfeeding is a key regulator of the pathophysiology during lactation. However, breastfeeding is beneficial to the physical and mental development of infants. We also discuss the beneficial effects of breastfeeding on the oral and maxillofacial development of infants. Pharmacological treatment of PLO is also discussed. This review also discusses how dynamic regulatory changes in bone metabolism during pregnancy and lactation affect homeostasis of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) and alveolar bone in mothers, from the perspectives of TMJ diseases and orthodontic treatment.
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