Prevention of postmenopausal bone loss and treatment of osteoporosis.

Osteoporosis is now recognized as an increasingly prevalent disorder throughout the world. Fragility fractures and their subsequent short- and long-term complications are the adverse outcomes of this disease that is essentially silent until fractures occur. Given that the presence of one fragility fracture is an important predictor of the risk of subsequent fractures, prevention of the first fracture is critical whenever possible. Two key elements in fracture prevention that are discussed in this article are the attainment of optimal peak bone mass and the prevention of bone loss at menopause, with the major focus on the prevention of postmenopausal bone loss.