A common cause of bone fracture is osteoporosis. The word osteoporosis literally means porous bone. With this disease, your bones become less dense on the inside and more likely to break. A fall, a lifting or twisting motion, or even a hug can easily break one or more of your bones if you have osteoporosis.

When a bone with osteoporosis is broken, it’s called a fragility fracture and more than 1.5 million people suffer these fractures each year. The most common locations are the wrist, hip and spine.

Bones with osteoporosis take longer to heal than healthy bones, but with time, medication and physical therapy, patients can often regain bone strength.

A dedicated fracture liaison service coordinator will help you understand osteoporosis, as well as:

• Provide care after low-trauma fractures.
  
• Help prevent future fractures.
  
• Provide a complete bone health evaluation.
  
• Offer early intervention to improve your quality of life.
  
• Work with your other health care providers to provide fracture prevention and screenings.

The coordinator will review your medical history, the history of your recent fracture, evaluate your risks for another fracture and discuss treatments. To understand your bone health, you might need a bone density scan, X-ray and/or physical examination.

During your visit with the fracture liaison service coordinator, you’ll be asked the following questions:

• Have you had a bone density test?
  
• Have you ever been told you have bone loss, osteoporosis or osteopenia?
  
• Do you take calcium or vitamin D supplements?
  
• Have you had any broken bones after age 50?