Postmenopausal osteoporosis

Postmenopausal osteoporosis is a form of osteoporosis that commonly occurs during the decades after menopause. It is a pathological condition of the human skeleton that is characterized by the following features :

• low bone mass
• bone fragility caused by worsening of microscopic structural properties of the bone
• consequent susceptibility to fractures

Osteoporosis is assessed, according to WHO criteria, as bone mineral density (BMD). The T-score is a representation of patient's BMD expressed as number of standard deviations below or above mean BMD of the young adult.

T-score values below 2.5 SD are defined as characteristic of osteoporosis. Values between -1 SD and -2.5 SD are defined as osteopenia[?].