Osteoporosis causes weakness of bone in elderly females or in younger population with special conditions like long term steroid intake, hormone replacement therapy, smoking or chronic alcohol intake.

The lumber spine, wrist and hip joints are most prone to get osteoporotic fractures following minor injuries.

Risk assessment is done by a Bone Mineral Densitometry test using DEXA scan technique. A poor T score with risk factors increases Osteoporotic  Fracture Risk.

Osteoporosis management is graded according to the fracture risk with tablets or injections like teriperatide, zolidronic acid or denusomab

If these weak bones get fractured it becomes difficult for them to heal in plaster or after surgery. 

Balloon Kyphoplasty is a procedure for relieving pain in fractures of back bones caused due to weakness (called osteoporotic pathological fractures). The normal square shaped bones might become flattened and cause severe backache. In this procedure done under local or general anesthesia.  Through a small hole a needle is passed in the bone and a balloon is inflated to increase the height of the bone. Then the balloon is removed and the empty space is filled with special bone cement to give the bone the strength and height. 

There is almost immediate pain relief and the procedure (kyphoplasty) is a boon in such cases suffering from osteoprosis.

I do nearly 20 such cases every year with excellent results.