Keynote meeting for healthcare professionals with an interest in osteoporosis

The Irish Osteoporosis Society Annual Medical Conference will hear from experts about the latest evidence and guidelines in the field

The Irish Osteoporosis Society (IOS) Annual Medical Conference for Health Professionals will be held virtually on 19 October 2024. Established by Prof Moira O’Brien in 1996, the IOS supports patients with osteoporosis and their families while offering valuable information to healthcare professionals about the disease.

The Annual Medical Conference provides the opportunity for those with an interest in osteoporosis to hear about the latest evidence and guidelines in the area.

Research

Irish research on osteoporosis has been gathering momentum in recent years. In late 2023, an international research team, led by researchers from the University of Galway, revealed that between 300,000 and 500,000 men and women in Ireland are living with osteoporosis.

Researchers from the schools of Engineering, Computer Science and Medicine at the University of Galway carried out their analysis in collaboration with Tsinghua University in China, Oxford University in the UK, and Galway, Manorhamilton, and Sligo University Hospitals.

The research used data from the health service in Ireland spanning 20 years to reveal:

▶ More than 50,000 osteoporotic fractures occur each year in Ireland.

▶ One-in-three men and one-in-five women die within one year following a hip fracture.

▶ The number of osteoporosis-related deaths in Ireland is similar to, or greater than, the number of deaths related to Covid-19.

▶ Fewer than one-fifth of people admitted to public hospitals with an osteoporotic fracture are discharged with a diagnosis of, or treatment for, osteoporosis.

▶ More than one million people in Ireland have low bone mineral density putting them at greater risk of fracture.

▶ Although men have a lower risk of fracture, they account for almost one-in-three public hospital admissions for osteoporotic fractures in Ireland.

▶ Less than 50 per cent of older people who suffer an osteoporotic hip fracture will return to their baseline level of function.

▶ Fractures are one of the leading causes of long-term admissions to nursing homes.

The research team noted that public hospital bed days for fragility fractures among adults aged over 50 have risen almost 50 per cent since 2008 and are at a higher level than those for ischaemic heart disease, solid cancers, or diabetes mellitus – conditions where national programmes exist. They argued that a similar national programmme for osteoporosis should be established.

Clinicians, computer scientists, and engineers at University of Galway are involved in a project using Dual-energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DXA) technology to measure bone density and develop new screening and testing strategies for early identification of osteoporosis.

Funded by the Health Research Board, the DXA Management Application Project uses state-of-the art machines to develop a personalised, patient-centred tool for osteoporosis screening and fracture prediction.

Meeting

Developments such as this are sure to be noted at the upcoming IOS conference.

The meeting will begin with an opening address by Prof O’Brien, the President of the Society. Following the opening address, Dr Sinead Hussey, GP and Clinical Lead for Centric Health, will deliver the first presentation. It is on the topic of bone health during menopause. Dr Hussey graduated from University College Cork in 2002. Between 2005 and 2008 she completed the Trinity College Dublin (TCD)/HSE specialist training programme in general practice.

Her qualifications also include a Diploma in Clinical Psychiatry, Higher Diploma in Dermatology and the Family Planning/Contraceptive certificate. Dr Hussey’s special interests include dermatology, paediatrics, and all aspects of women’s health including family planning, implanon, Mirena coil insertion, and sexually transmitted disease screening.

The next talk, on the subject of the physiotherapy management of pelvic organ prolapse and urinary incontinence, will be delivered by Chartered Physiotherapist Ms Aoife Ní Eochaidh. Ms Ní Eochaidh specialises in women’s and men’s health and continence at Bon Secours Hospital, Galway.

After Ms Ní Eochaidh’s talk, a presentation will be given focusing on the patient perspective. Ms Annette Costello was diagnosed with a progressive non-treatable neurological condition in 2006 following a series of fractures to her ankles. She will speak specifically about the difficulty of finding a radiology department in Dublin that could provide a hoist transfer.

A question-and-answer session will then take place, followed by a refreshment break.

The title of the first talk after the break is ‘Alternative bone health screening for people with an intellectual disability’. It will be given by Ms Anne Power, Advanced Nurse Practitioner in Chronic Disease Management, Wexford Residential Intellectual Disability Service.

The next talk concerns calcium and vitamin D. The speaker, Ms Orla Walsh, is a Registered Dietitian. After earning a Bachelor of Arts in Physiology from TCD, Ms Walsh pursued further academic and professional development with a Postgraduate Diploma in Dietetics, a Master of Science in Clinical Nutrition, a Postgraduate Diploma in Sports and Exercise Nutrition, and a Master of Arts in Physiology.

This will be followed by a presentation by Ms Ciara Shields, Chartered Physiotherapist and a Clinical Specialist in Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy. Ms Shields is the owner of IONA Physiotherapy in Drumcondra, where she conducts her clinical work. She will speak to the conference about treating patients with vertebral fractures.

The next items on the agenda are another question-and-answer session and oral abstract presentations, which will be followed by lunch.

Prof Walsh has expertise in the use of parathyroid hormone as an anabolic treatment for severe osteoporosis and has played a leading role in advocating for vitamin D milk supplementation at both national and European levels

Final session

The final session of the conference will begin with a talk by Dr Kevin McCarroll, Consultant Physician and Geriatrician, bone health unit, St James’s Hospital, Dublin.

He graduated in medicine from TCD and completed his postgraduate training at Dublin university hospitals. He undertook a clinical Fellowship at the Mercer’s Institute for Successful Ageing and was awarded a doctorate in medicine for his thesis on the effects of vitamin D on cognition, blood pressure, falls, and mood. Dr McCarroll’s presentation is titled ‘Denosumab – Evolving management of a therapy in bone health’.

Following this, Prof Bernard Walsh will discuss the problem of low vitamin D in the community. Prof Walsh is a Consultant Physician and Geriatrician in the bone health unit at St James’s Hospital and TCD. He has previously served as a Visiting Professor at the University of California, San Francisco, US, and as a Consultant Physician in Durham, UK. Prof Walsh has expertise in the use of parathyroid hormone as an anabolic treatment for severe osteoporosis and has played a leading role in advocating for vitamin D milk supplementation at both national and European levels.

A question-and-answer session will follow the talk, after which there will be an abstract award ceremony.

The meeting will be brought to a close with a final talk by Prof O’Brien.