Treatment of osteoporosis in the elderly.

Fracture risk is adversely related to bone density, wherever it is measured. Women should be screened by bone densitometry around the time of the menopause and treated with calcium or hormones if the density is low. Women with vertebral compression should be treated with calcitriol if calcium absorption is low, with hormones if urine calcium is high, and with calcitriol and hormones if both abnormalities are present. It is uncertain whether newer treatments offer any advantages over this regimen. Vitamin D is indicated in household individuals or others with low levels of 25 OHD to prevent loss from secondary hyperparathyroidism and perhaps also to improve muscle power.