Osteomalacia is a disease of the skeletal system that causes softening of the bones; it is also known as the adult-variety of rickets. This disease is especially common in the elderly, pregnant, and young children.
The main cause of Osteomalacia is Vitamin D deficiency, which includes both lack of sunlight exposure and inadequate amount of Vitamin D ingested. Other causes include particular surgeries that take out all or several parts of your stomach, and Celiac disease, which impedes your stomach from taking in nutrients. Liver and kidney disorders, and distinct drugs that are utilized to treat seizures (like Phenytoin and Phenobarbital) are also guilty of causing Osteomalacia.
Specific characteristics of Osteomalacia are softening of the bones as a result of difficulties with bone formation, which is not to be confused with Osteoporosis which impairs living bone that has already been established. Also, under examination using X-Rays, meager crack in the bone are visible (also known as Looser Transformation Zones).
The most common symptom is a greater risk of…show more content… This is then sent to the liver, where it acquires more hydrogen and oxygen molecules to convert into 25(OH)D; 25(OH)D is the chemicals that doctors monitor in order to determine Vitamin D deficiencies. The chemical heads to the kidneys where it picks up the last set of oxygen and hydrogen molecules, which finally makes it usable in the body. When Vitamin D isn’t present, the intestines cannot fully absorb calcium. This is critical because blood calcium is necessary for neuromuscular and cardiac function. However, the body will not tolerate levels to decrease, so it will discharge parathyroid hormone, which gathers calcium from bone. Therefore, while the nerves and heart function nice and normal, bones are left with the burden of the act. Lastly, as bone calcium density decreases, the bones continue to grow break-prone and