[Involutional osteoporosis].

Involutional osteoporosis has been divided into two types. Type-1 osteoporosis, known as postmenopausal osteoporosis, occurs in women after menopause. Type-2 osteoporosis, known as senile osteoporosis, occurs in men and women over 70 years of age. The general symptoms are back pain in patients with Type-1 osteoporosis and back pain with spinal deformity in Type-2. Vertebral fractures occur in Type-1 and fractures of the femoral neck are common in Type-2. Post-traumatic vertebral collapse following compression fractures is recently recognized as one of the important and serious complications in osteoporotic fractures. Other fractures such as femoral neck, wrist (distal radius) and proximal humerus are common in this disease. Study of bone metabolism and its pharmaceutical reaction has advanced, but the treatment of osteoporosis is still not satisfactory.