SPAIN – The person with diabetes are up to 6 times more risk of fragility fracture, as revealed during a panel discussion held under the XXVII National Diabetes Congress, organized by the Spanish Society of Diabetes (SSD) and the Spanish Society of Endocrinology and Nutrition (SEEN).

While they are known cardiovascular, eye and kidney complications of diabetes, there is still a lack of bone social implications of this metabolic disease that affects Spain and more than 5 million people. “People with diabetes are 2 to 6 times higher risk of induced by the existence of a problem of bone fragility, a high risk that is independent of the type of diabetes that is suffered (type 1 or type 2) fractures,” said Manuel Muñoz Torres, endocrinologist and professor of Medicine at the University of Granada.

As factors causing this risk, mainly it highlights the deleterious effect hyperglycemia has on bone quality.  Along with this, as reported by the expert, the set of macro and microvascular complications and comorbidities that is brought with diabetes (obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia or kidney problems) also negatively affect bone health.

In this regard, the expert acknowledged that, paradoxically, people with diabetes have a higher than non-diabetic population bone density, which, in his view, the problem does not stem from lack of blood, but of poor quality.

Even some drugs indicated for the treatment of diabetes have a negative impact on bone. “Among them are glitazones, drugs widely used in the management of diabetes and has been proven as an important adverse effect, cause bone disorders interest in particularly vulnerable populations (elderly or postmenopausal women)” he argued.

Jose Antonio Amado, head of Endocrinology Hospital Valdecilla (Santander), added that there are other new oral antidiabetic drugs, recent addition to their therapeutic arsenal, still, because of its short path, “cannot credit a long-term bone safety.”

An added risk is seen in this area is the derivative of episodes of hypoglycemia. “In people with diabetes, especially in older women, the appearance of a hypoglycemic event may result in many cases falls and therefore fractures. Given this scenario, we should not use insulin cheerfully and should always monitor this possible associated risk,” emphasized Amado.

Given these risks, experts gathered at the table stressed the need to pay particular attention to bone fragility in people with diabetes. “These people require particular measures to prevent future occurrence of bone fractures, being critical that your doctor will warn of this risk and will report on conventional measures to prevent these alterations. In any case, the first measure to prevent bone fracture these people should be undoubtedly ensure they have well – controlled diabetes, through avoiding the use of hypoglycemic those that may increase the risk of bone fragility,” Muñoz concluded.