[Osteomalacia and rickets].

Although rickets and osteomalacia posed a serious health problem in industrialised countries a hundred years ago, these diseases are now rarely found, and when, usually in certain risk groups. In underdeveloped countries, rickets is still a major public health problem due to inadequate calcium intake by children. In our highly developed countries, elderly people--especially when institutionalised in nursing homes--are at a very high risk of developing osteomalacia, often combined with pre-existing osteoporosis, with its high impact on mobility and life expectancy in this section of the population. In this review, the common mechanisms involved in developing rickets or osteomalacia are identified and therapeutic measures are reported. Rare causes of osteomalacia due to congenital errors in metabolism or genetic defects are also discussed.