Latest posts for the topic "Skiing with osteopenia/osteoporosis"

Skiing with osteopenia/osteoporosis

Fri, 12 Nov 2010 10:49:15 GMT

Mrs D has just been diagnosed with osteopenia, which is reduced bone density which is borderline osteoporosis.

Has anyone on here suffered from this issue and are there any issues to be concerned about going skiing especially getting travel insurance?

Re:Skiing with osteopenia

Fri, 12 Nov 2010 13:27:20 GMT

There is an Insurance Broker called PJ Hayman who have been around a while. They offer a specialist travel insurance called Free Spirit to cover pre existing medical conditions. It might be worth you talking to them.

http://www.free-spirit.com/

I'm not connected to them, but I have seen this policy discussed on other ski forums.

Re:Skiing with osteopenia

Tue, 18 Jan 2011 21:04:10 GMT

Thanks for the info re insurance.

Mrs D has sadly now been advised by her consultant not to continue skiing (as well as using the gym or running). Her spine is the most worrying area, being -2.3 against the onset of osteoporosis at -2.5. Its difficult to know whether he is saying this just to cover his back. Mrs D has never broken anything, even though she has fallen over many times whilst learning to ski and use the lifts. Mrs D is devastated by this news as after 2 seasons she is now very proficient and had a family holiday booked in 2 weeks time with sons and daughter-in-laws to Schladming. However, she feels she must respect his opinion and not ski again.

I would be interest to hear from anyone in this situation who has continued to ski, and if so what precautions you have taken?

Any comments much appreciated - but I won't be able to view them until Thursday lunchtime.

Re:Skiing with osteopenia/osteoporosis

Tue, 18 Jan 2011 22:36:32 GMT

I can understand the advice not to continue road running but not going to the gym goes against the normal advice.

Weight bearing exercise is normally recommended for osteoporosis.

Osteopaenia is not an illness merely a description of bone density which is lower than the age related norms but not low enough to be osteoporosis which is considered an illness.

Re:Skiing with osteopenia/osteoporosis

Tue, 18 Jan 2011 23:00:39 GMT

Thats very sad news for Mrs D however, I agree with Andy that the condition is a benchmark for a lower bone density and not as serious as osteoporosis. Has your Wife considered a second opinion from a consultant orthopod who specialises in sports injuries etc. Mrs D may be able to reduce risks, if her back/spine is causing the most concern, by wearing a form of back support/protection. I have seen these made in Occupational Health Departments and something such as this may assist.

Good luck and I hope Mrs D gets the opportunity to ski again.

Re:Skiing with osteopenia/osteoporosis

Wed, 19 Jan 2011 00:18:58 GMT

I am very sorry to hear of Mrs D's illness. She must very very disappointed especially having had a holiday booked. I hope things work out and maybe she could be helped with calcium tablets which would help her bone density. Ria x

Re:Skiing with osteopenia/osteoporosis

Wed, 19 Jan 2011 08:04:25 GMT

Hi Dixie Dean,
I'm very sorry to hear your news. How awful :cry:

I only hope you can find a private consultant who specializes in this area and says it's okay to ski, in time for the holiday. If your wife's current consultant is advising her not to ski then I would imagine it would be very difficult to get insurance for this.

Ally

Re:Skiing with osteopenia/osteoporosis

Wed, 19 Jan 2011 08:24:30 GMT

The key thing is why the orthopaedic consultant doesn't want your wife to ski. If there is a very specific reason then Ok, but if it's merely because there is a statistically increased risk of a fracture then that's not an entirely convincing reason.
I'd suggest you go & see your GP - they deal with more osteopaenia than the hospital sector specialists and will also (if needs be) be able to steer you in the direction of a specialist who will give you a balanced opinion.

(Many, but not all, orthopaedic surgeons, view skiing as a dangerous sport and the cause of a lot of work. Particularly those who don't ski)

Re:Skiing with osteopenia/osteoporosis

Wed, 19 Jan 2011 17:37:40 GMT

Hi all, thanks for the input. The doctor Mrs D saw was a consultant in osteoporosis who is a skier. What is difficult to gauge is whether he is simply saying don't ski, as to say do ski would leave him open to criticism later or that he genuinely believes that it simply wouldn't be a good idea - I suspect it was the latter. She is already on Calcium and Vitamin D and is to start Alendronic Acid which is medicine for rebuilding her bone density. We already bought a Forcefield back protector before we had this latest consultation, on the basis that the doctor might agree that taking suitable preventative action would be enough, not expecting him to say stop completely.
I have pondered on speaking to the Disability people at the Chill Factore to see what they say, or to find a physio who deals with sports injuries to see what they say, and to get general advice on what see can still do at the gym, as getting that sort of info is not easy to get. If anyone knows anybody they could recommend, please do.

andymol2 I agree entirely about your concern for a specific reason not to ski. As I said, Mrs Dean has fallen over many times in her first year, and we experienced a few knocks getting of and on chair lifts last Feb, but none of these did any damage other than a bruise or two.

ally Free Spirit would in fact insure her, despite her condition, it put the premium up by about GBP50 a year, not bad considering.

Re:Skiing with osteopenia/osteoporosis

Wed, 19 Jan 2011 18:54:11 GMT

Hi Dixie Dean,
I'm glad to hear the insurance angle is covered :D

Forgive my ignorance, but assuming the worst happens and your wife breaks a bone, what effect will the osteopenia have on how long it takes to heal? Has the consultant told you? Is it worth the risk?

If it just meant something like the bone would take an extra 2 weeks to heal then I'd say go ahead. But if it meant that it would never heal properly and it would give your wife problems for the rest of her life then I'd say 'no' she shouldn't ski.

Do you see what I mean? I don't know the facts about this.

Ally

Re:Skiing with osteopenia/osteoporosis

Wed, 19 Jan 2011 19:35:43 GMT

Hi Ally

In my wife's case, the reduced bone density is in her lower spine, i.e. where others might have a slight aero (chocolate) effect my wife has larger holes in her bone. The horizontal layers tend not to break, but the vertical strands do. Therefore, layers collapse (fracture) under stress, this could be by turning at a funny angle and causing the bone to be squashed and collapse, or reaching into a high cupboard or carrying heavy shopping, any of which could also result in a collapse. These collapses never repair (although they may consolidate) leading eventually to the curvature of the spine associated with some older people, particularly women. So my wife could fall over many times and may suffer no relevant injury, however one twist putting her seatbelt on one day, and twang goes one of the vertical bars in her spine.

Actual fractures as in the sort I might get normally, and which of course Mrs D could get if she fell over (as opposed to the stress fractures in her spine) will still heal as normal. She could get one of them in a leg or arm and it would be a normal recovery. A stress fracture to her spine resulting from a fall would not repair.

Another issue, is that often minor vertical fractures often go unnoticed and don't cause any immediate pain, they are termed as silent. However, they do in the long term have a cumulative effect of curvature.

I notice that the Spire hospital in Liverpool have a physiotherapy department that specialises in osteoporosis and have their own bone density machine, so I might give them a ring and see if we can get a consultation and a better idea of what exercise my wife can do to strengthen her muscles and help rebuild her bones, as well as an idea of whether any more skiing is possible and what if anything she can do at the gym.

Cross country skiing has been also suggested as being very good for osteoporosis.

To sum up, the whole matter is very daunting, is causing Mrs D some sleepless nights, and a very heavy feeling that something she was really enjoying, both skiing and her running, may be over. It is something I think we need to know as much as we can about so that we are well informed to make the best decisions to what she can and can't do in the future.

Re:Skiing with osteopenia/osteoporosis

Thu, 20 Jan 2011 16:57:54 GMT

Thanks Dixie Dean,
It does indeed seem to be a very complex situation. Do you think the treatment she's having now will strengthen the weak bones in her spine so that she'd have a better chance of being okay next year? Or not?

Best of luck with getting some clearer advice from the doctors on this :D

Based on what you've said, I would say she'd be okay to ski very carefully - like stick to wide easy blue runs instead of black and maybe try to surround her with a phalanx of your friends to guard her from some idiot crashing into her.

Ally

Re:Skiing with osteopenia/osteoporosis

Thu, 20 Jan 2011 17:31:42 GMT

Hi DixieDean,

I've been reading this thread with interest. I'm really sorry to hear about MrsD, and really hope she gets some good news soon.

Anyway, I just took a quick look on the internet to see whether I could find anything on skiing with osteopenia. Came across an old thread on (I think) an American site called Ski Diva. Some of the ladies said that they still ski after having been diagnosed with it, and their readings are similar to MrsD's. They are in the 'I'm not going to let this spoil my fun' camp.

I've been wondering what I would do in the same situation. Would I say stuff it, if I can injure myself just as easily putting on a seat belt I may as well get some fun in before something happens? Or would I be sensible and consider that I would prefer not to add any additional risk? I'm really not sure. It's a very personal decision.

NHS direct suggests the National Osteoporosis Society for support (http://www.nos.org.uk/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?PID=268&srcid=). Maybe MrsD would feel better speaking to others who have been in the same situation? No doubt some of them have been and potentially still are skiers. Maybe they can offer some real experience and possibly inspiration for MrsD who is probably feeling pretty low at the moment.

EDIT - I'm not suggesting that this is a substitute for seeking more medical advice, just that it's an additional avenue for support :D

Re:Skiing with osteopenia/osteoporosis

Thu, 20 Jan 2011 19:44:06 GMT

Once again, thanks for your support ladies and gents. Emma I too spotted the ski divas, so some ladies are obviously continuing. My wife has been through a lot to learn to ski so proficiently, and it would be fair to say that when she started it was full on fear factor. It took 12 months of going to the Chill Factore every fortnight until she felt in charge of her skis when pushing off at the top. Last September she did her first reds at Zermatt on the glacier and over the last few weeks was transitioning to becoming a really proficient carving type skier with minimum upper body movement and a very nice style.

The problem for her now is that the initial fear factor is back with a vengeance in the form of the possibilities for collisions and the like occurring as soon as she sets foot on the piste.

I was a bobby until I retired a few years ago and you get taught to constantly risk assess as you work, you get a raised awareness about all that it going on around you and you are always looking for danger and threats, whether they be with hooligans, villains or other road users.

So I'm constantly scanning all around for problems when I ski. Mostly there are none, but I very quickly spot potential issues. My wife has never had to do this and so the whole concept of being risk aware is alien to her and is something she is going to have to learn.

Regrettably I think in the short term the whole matter is just too big to get her head around. Already she has said she couldn't bear going on holiday with the rest of us in 2 weeks time and that it will be less torture to stay at home.

Re:Skiing with osteopenia/osteoporosis

Thu, 20 Jan 2011 21:36:29 GMT

Mrs SwingBeep was diagnosed with osteopenia last year. She has no intention of giving up skiing or any other sporting activity and was not advised to by her doctor. She was also prescribed Calcium and Vitamin D tablets but didn't take them because they may increase the risk of a heart attack.

Re:Skiing with osteopenia/osteoporosis

Thu, 20 Jan 2011 22:16:24 GMT

I've been looking around the web at ski injuries and remembered a site I came across last year http://www.ski-injury.com/injury-statistics/stats1#location

It lists ski injuries in order of prevalence, but there is no mention of back injuries, which pretty much must indicate that the likelihood of injuring your back is next to zero. I have emailed the doctor who runs the site to see if this is a reasonable conclusion.

Re:Skiing with osteopenia/osteoporosis

Thu, 20 Jan 2011 23:18:17 GMT

This document issued by the Swiss Council for Accident Prevention gives details of the prevalence of back injuries incurred whilst skiing
http://www.bfu.ch/English/Statistikverwaltung%20PDFs/2010/E_USP_T_06.pdf