American Society For Bone and Mineral Research - History

History

The American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR) is a professional, scientific and medical society established to promote excellence in bone and mineral research and to facilitate the translation of that research into clinical practice. Today the ASBMR has a membership of nearly 4,000 physicians, basic research scientists, and clinical investigators from over fifty countries.

In the 1970s, an increasing number of U.S. scientists began to focus their research on the understanding of basic bone biology and the disease osteoporosis. These scientists brought interest to a new field -- bone and mineral research. The field grew during the decade, resulting in an interest to create an organization to bring together clinical and experimental scientists involved in the study of bone and mineral metabolism. Such an organization would allow scientists to discuss and exchange new developments in bone-related research, and could encourage young researchers to pursue careers in the field.

In 1974, while attending the annual meeting of the Endocrine Society in Chicago, Illinois, USA, a number of bone scientists, including Louis Avioli, Claude Arnaud, Norman Bell, William Peck, John Potts and Lawrence Raisz, along with Shirley Hohl, met at the Drake Hotel to discuss the creation of such an organization. At this meeting, the group laid the groundwork for the formation of a broad-based, active and identifiable society that would promote the study of the expanding bone and mineral field. Three years later, in November 1977, their idea was realized with the official incorporation of the ASBMR as a nonprofit organization.

The ASBMR’s Annual Meeting attracted interest from bone and mineral investigators, and became a place to hear about research current to the field. The first ASBMR Annual Meeting was held June 11-June 12, 1979, at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim, California, USA with approximately 150 people in attendance.

During the 1980s several meritorious awards programs to honor excellence in the field were established, including the Fuller Albright, William F. Neuman and Frederic C. Bartter Awards. In 1986, the ASBMR rolled-out its first official publication—the peer-reviewed bi-monthly Journal of Bone and Mineral Research (JBMR) which would later become a monthly publication. In 1984, public interest in osteoporosis led ASBMR researchers to establish The Osteoporosis Foundation—a U.S. nonprofit voluntary health organization solely dedicated to osteoporosis and bone health. One year later the organization was renamed the National Osteoporosis Foundation (NOF). In 1990, the Society published the first edition of the Primer on the Metabolic Bone Diseases and Disorders of Mineral Metabolism—a publication intended to introduce medical, dental, graduate students, and fellows to the field of bone and mineral research.

In the 1990s, the field experienced growth with the rollout of several new treatments and therapies for osteoporosis and other bone diseases, resulting in increased interest and research in bone and mineral metabolism. For the Society, this translated into annual double digit percentage growth in membership and Annual Meeting attendance, as well as an increased diversification and internationalization of the ASBMR membership which just a few years prior had been primarily U.S.-based researchers.

By the mid-1990s the ASBMR was serving a fairly even mix of clinicians and basic scientists, U.S. and international members. With the expansion of its membership, the Society also expanded the scope of its mission, now also dedicating itself to fostering integration of clinical and basic science, and facilitating the translation of that science to health care and clinical practice. ASBMR began to play a larger role in professional practice issues, including working with other organizations on clinical guidelines in osteoporosis and approaches to the challenges represented by the proliferation of bone scanning devices with limited databases. The Society also began to play a role in advocacy—becoming a founding member of the National Coalition for Osteoporosis and Related Bone Diseases ("Bone Coalition") together with the National Osteoporosis Foundation (NOF), the Paget Foundation and the Osteogenesis Imperfecta Foundation to promote increased funding for bone research at the U.S. federal government level, as well as joining the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) to advocate for increased U.S. government research funding for all of science.

At the beginning of the 21st century, ASBMR also began self-publication of both the JBMR and Primer on the Metabolic Bone Diseases and Disorders of Mineral Metabolism, and made new education initiatives a priority, including the development of slide sets, new publications geared to improve communication with its membership, career-related sessions at the Annual Meeting, and annual topical meetings. Staying true to its original mission of educating young investigators, the ASBMR also launched new awards programs for junior investigators.

With nearly 4,000 members spanning over fifty countries and the success of its publications, the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research and the Primer on Metabolic Bone Disease and Disorders of Mineral Metabolism, ASBMR continues to grow and remains a leader in the field of bone and mineral metabolism. ASBMR maintains goals of educating young investigators, encouraging an open Annual Meeting and remaining active in scientific research.