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(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- There may be a new medical condition the elderly have to face.
New research shows seniors may be coping with a growing epidemic of bone death in their jawbone, called bisphosphonate osteonecrosis. Its a debilitating ailment patients are more likely to get when they take common treatments for osteoporosis.
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More than half of Americans over age 50 are being treated for low bone mass and osteoporosis. Many of these patients take prescription bisphosphonates to treat the disease. But these drugs predispose them to bisphosphonate osteonecrosis, which was first identified only five years ago. Symptoms of the condition include pain, swelling, or infection of the gums or jaw, gums that will not heal, loose teeth, numbness or a feeling of heaviness in the jaw, drainage and exposed bone.
SOURCE: 2008 Annual Meeting & OTO EXPO of the American Academy of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery Foundation (AAO-HNSF) in Chicago, Illinois, September 21-24
This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, which offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, click on: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.
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