Prevalence of osteoporosis in Australia

Because osteoporosis has no obvious symptoms until a trauma fracture occurs, it is difficult to estimate the number of people living with this condition.  Estimating the prevalence of osteoporosis in Australia looks at both the epidemiology and the impact of osteoporisis in people over 50 years of age.  It is shown that it markedly increases with age and is more common in women than in men.

In 2011-12 the estimated prevalence of self-reported diagnosed osteoporosis among those aged 50 and over living in the community was 15% of women and 3% of men, according to the Australian Health Survey.  However, a recent study which measured bone density in a population sample estimated that 23% of women over 50 had osteoporosis and 6% of men.