[Advances in the treatment of osteoporosis (author's transl)]

Osteoporosis is not a disease in itself and, hence, the management and prognosis in any individual case depends on the aetiology. Other important factors determining treatment are the extent of the osteoporotic changes, the age and sex of the patient, the severity of the symptoms and the complications. The paramount aim of therapy is to arrest the osteoporotic process by selective treatment of the underlying cause of bone rarefication and, if possible, to achieve compensatory strengthening of the remaining skeletal structure by stimulating the formation of new bone.