Monaghan County Council is to write to the Minister for Health to request a national osteoporosis screening programme. The council will make the request following a motion put forward by Monaghan councillor, Paudge Connolly.
Latest statistics for Ireland show that between 300 and 500,000 people here have osteoporosis. Another stark statistic states that following a hip fracture, one-in-three men, and one-in-five women die within a year. The founder of the Irish Osteoporosis Society estimates only 19 per cent of people with the condition are actually diagnosed.
Professor Moira O'Brien also advocates for a nationwide screening programme for everyone over 55 and says this way, a huge number of debilitating fractures could be prevented. Councillor Connolly says screening for the bone disease should be viewed as important as that for breast or colon cancer: "It's regarded as a silent health crisis yet, we've nothing in place to detect it," Paudge Connolly told Northern Sound, "the sad thing is, if it's detected in time, it's preventable and treatable. That's why 80 per cent of people are diagnosed with it after a fracture, which, is a little bit late in the day and that's why I'd be calling on the Minister to introduce a programme as soon as possible."
