Med Headlines - A simple bone density test can detect “silent fractures” that would otherwise go unnoticed and lead to complications, such as a dowager’s hump, according to research published this week in the Journal of the American Medical Association. University of Pittsburgh scientists report that a commonly used bone density test can effectively screen for osteoporosis and predict a woman’s likelihood of developing spinal fractures up to 15 years in advance.

Doctors have long known that low bone density can increase the risk of osteoporosis and fractures, but until the long-term risks had never been documented until this study. In their 15-year study, Dr. Jane Cauley and her colleagues found that women who had low bone density and previous spinal fracture at baseline were 56% more likely to develop an additional fracture during the course of the study. Women with normal bone density and no previous fractures had a 9% risk.

“So many spine fractures are silent,” said Dr. Ethel Siris, president of the National Osteoporosis Foundation. “But if have a fracture and don’t know it, you’re at greater risk of more fractures in the future. The dowager’s hump that afflicts many elderly women is actually the result of multiple, accumulated fractures in the vertebrae. By identifying lesions early with the bone density test we shouldn’t be seeing dowager’s hump anymore.”

Ten million Americans over the age of 50 suffer from osteoporosis and a half million develop fractures as a result of their disease. The bone mineral density test uses low doses of X-rays to measure the amount of critical bone minerals, such as calcium, in key parts of the spine and hips.