HEALTH REPORT - Treating Osteoporosis

HEALTH REPORT
—
April 10, 2002: Treating Osteoporosis

By Nancy Steinbach

This is the VOA Special English Health Report.

Medical researchers say they may have found a new effective treatment for the bone -thinning condition called
osteoporosis. Osteoporosis greatly reduces the density¹ of bones. They become thin and weak and break easily.
The areas of the body most seriously affected² are the back bones and the hip³ bones.

Experts say the condition is a major health threat around the world. The World Health Organization estimates
that the risk of suffering a broken bone related to osteoporosis during a person’s life is about forty percent for
women and thirteen percent for men. It says the number of broken hips⁴ suffered by people around the world is
increasing.

There are several drugs to prevent bone loss. People take these pills every day or once a
week. However, not everyone can take the drugs because they have unwanted effects.

The new international study examined the effect of a drug called zoledronic acid on bones.
The drug has already been approved for use in cancer patients to treat a condition in which
calcium⁵ leaves the bones.

The researchers reported the results of their one-year study in the New England Journal of
Medicine. The study involved about three-hundred-fifty women in ten countries, including
France, Italy, Germany, Sweden, Austria, Canada and New Zealand.

Some of the women received zoledronic acid during the study. Different groups received different amounts of the
drug between one and four times a year. The other women received only an inactive substance. All of the women
received either the drug or the inactive substance through a thin tube into a vein⁶.

The researchers found increased bone density in the back bones and hip bones of all the women who received the
drug. The drug also slowed their rates of bone loss. The effects continued for at least a year after treatment, after
the drug had disappeared from the blood. The researchers also said the drug caused fewer unwanted effects than
those caused by osteoporosis drugs now in use.

The researchers say the study suggests that zoledronic acid given once a year may be an effective treatment for
osteoporosis. They will not know for sure for another five years, until more studies have been completed. These
larger and longer studies have already begun.

This VOA Special English Health Report was written by Nancy Steinbach.

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1 density   

n.密集，密度，浓度

参考例句：

• The population density of that country is 685 per square mile.那个国家的人口密度为每平方英里685人。
• The region has a very high population density.该地区的人口密度很高。

2 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

3 hip   

n.臀部，髋；屋脊

参考例句：

• The thigh bone is connected to the hip bone.股骨连着髋骨。
• The new coats blouse gracefully above the hip line.新外套在臀围线上优美地打着褶皱。

4 hips   

abbr.high impact polystyrene 高冲击强度聚苯乙烯，耐冲性聚苯乙烯n.臀部( hip的名词复数 )；[建筑学]屋脊；臀围（尺寸）；臀部…的

参考例句：

• She stood with her hands on her hips. 她双手叉腰站着。
• They wiggled their hips to the sound of pop music. 他们随着流行音乐的声音摇晃着臀部。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 calcium   

n.钙(化学符号Ca)

参考例句：

• We need calcium to make bones.我们需要钙来壮骨。
• Calcium is found most abundantly in milk.奶含钙最丰富。

6 vein   

n.血管，静脉；叶脉，纹理；情绪；vt.使成脉络

参考例句：

• The girl is not in the vein for singing today.那女孩今天没有心情唱歌。
• The doctor injects glucose into the patient's vein.医生把葡萄糖注射入病人的静脉。