Epidemiology, costs and burden of osteoporosis in Mexico

Osteoporosis is a serious health condition internationally recognized in developed countries where its impact has been compared with other chronic diseases. Osteoporosis and its related fragility fractures have been reported to have a greater impact on patient quality of life and social costs than breast and prostate cancers.

Consistent with trends in other regions of the world, Mexico is facing an epidemiological transition with a growing number of elderly people and an increase in life expectancy. Although this ageing process took almost two centuries to occur in industrialized and developed countries, it is taking place very rapidly in Mexico. Life expectancy at birth has increased almost 39 years on average over the last seven decades (from 36.2 to 75 years old). The population of 50 years and over is currently 19 million, and it will increase to 55 million by 2050. By then, the average life expectancy in Mexico will be 82 years of age [1]. Because osteoporosis is a disease associated with ageing, the number of osteoporotic fractures is expected to rise accordingly.

Hip fractures worldwide are projected to increase from 1.2 million in the 1990s to 2.6 million by 2025 and to 4.5 million by 2050, assuming no change in age- and sex-specific incidence. The vast majority of hip fractures in the twenty-first century will occur in developing countries; Asia and Latin America are estimated to be the two regions that will have the highest increases [2]. Osteoporosis and fragility fracture have become a focus of research in Mexico, and the National Institutes of Health in Mexico have recently recognized osteoporosis as a public health problem. However, osteoporosis still remains a greatly undetected and untreated national health priority disease because of the lack of awareness at all levels.