People over the age of 50 who have severe mental illness are more likely than the general population to experience fragility fractures but may be less likely to get a diagnosis for osteoporosis, finds a new study led by UCL researchers. Fragility fractures are broken bones that occur after a minor fall or impact that wouldn't usually cause a fracture. This kind of ailment often occurs in people with osteoporosis, a disease that weakens the bones and makes them more likely to break.
The study, published in the British Journal of General Practice , analysed the GP records of over 440,000 people over the age of 50 between 2000 and 2018, to examine the diagnosis of osteoporosis and fragility fractures in people who have been previously diagnosed with severe mental illness, compared to the general population. Severe mental illness (SMI) refers to mental health problems such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or other forms of psychosis that are often so debilitating that they have a great impact on a person's ability to work and function on a daily basis. People with SMI often have poor physical health and frequently develop chronic physical health conditions at a younger age than people without SMI.
These chronic conditions include obesity, asthma, diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), coronary heart disease, stroke, heart failure and liver disease. People with SMI are also at increased risk of developing more than one of these chronic conditions. In their new s.
