Osteoporosis – Understanding the Silent Breakdown of Bone Homeostasis

Good [morning/afternoon], everyone. Today, I’ll be speaking about osteoporosis, a chronic condition that silently undermines the structural integrity of our bones. To understand this disease, we must first appreciate the normal physiology and anatomy of bone, and then explore how osteoporosis disrupts these processes, who is most at risk, and how we can treat and prevent it.

Healthy Bone Physiology and Anatomy

Bone is a dynamic, living tissue composed of two main types:

Cortical bone: The dense outer shell.
Trabecular bone: The spongy inner matrix.

These structures are maintained through a process called bone remodeling, which involves two key cell types:

Osteoclasts: The