Treatment
At present there is no cure for OI. Treatment is aimed at increasing overall bone strength to prevent fracture and maintain mobility.
There have been many clinical trials performed with Fosamax (Alendronate), a drug used to treat those experiencing brittleness of bones due to osteoporosis. Higher levels of effectiveness apparently are to be seen in the pill form versus the IV form, but results seem inconclusive. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will not approve Fosamax as a treatment for OI because long term effects of the drug have not been fully researched yet, although it is often used in preteens, instead of Pamidronate.
Although there is no known cure for OI, regular weight-bearing exercise, a diet rich in calcium and vitamin D, a healthy lifestyle, and, in some cases, vitamin supplements will help off-set early development of osteoporosis, prevent future fractures, and delay other health concerns related to OI.
Bone infections are treated as and when they occur with the appropriate antibiotics and antiseptics.
Read more about this topic: Osteogenesis Imperfecta
Famous quotes containing the word treatment:
“I will use treatment to help the sick according to my ability and judgment, but never with a view to injury and wrongdoing. Neither will I administer a poison to anybody when asked to do so, nor will I suggest such a course. Similarly, I will not give to a woman a pessary to cause abortion. I will keep pure and holy both my life and my art.”
—Hippocrates (c. 460–c. 370 B.C.)
“[17th-century] Puritans were the first modern parents. Like many of us, they looked on their treatment of children as a test of their own self-control. Their goal was not to simply to ensure the child’s duty to the family, but to help him or her make personal, individual commitments. They were the first authors to state that children must obey God rather than parents, in case of a clear conflict.”
—C. John Sommerville (20th century)
“Judge Ginsburg’s selection should be a model—chosen on merit and not ideology, despite some naysaying, with little advance publicity. Her treatment could begin to overturn a terrible precedent: that is, that the most terrifying sentence among the accomplished in America has become, “Honey—the White House is on the phone.””
—Anna Quindlen (b. 1952)