Zubaida Rahman Calls for Osteoporosis Screening Across All 64 Districts

Dr Zubaida Rahman, vice president of the Ziaur Rahman Foundation, has called for coordinated awareness and screening programmes in all 64 districts to prevent osteoporosis, raise public awareness of the disease and ensure treatment for those affected.

She said more research and regular screening are needed to determine the true picture of this bone-loss disease.

She made the remarks on Tuesday as chief guest at a scientific seminar held at the convention hall of the Super Specialized Hospital building of Bangladesh Medical University in the capital, organised by the Doctors Association of Bangladesh (DAB) to mark World Osteoporosis Day, under the theme Osteoporosis: A Preventable Epidemic.

Dr Zubaida Rahman said osteoporosis is a silent disease. In this disease bones become weak, thin and porous, increasing the risk of sudden fractures. The normal life of affected people is disrupted and their ability to carry out daily work decreases. Effective steps need to be taken now to deal with this situation.

She said that through collective initiatives it is possible to reach people in all regions of the country with prevention, detection and treatment services for the disease.

Citing a study conducted on women aged 45 to 80 in north-central Bangladesh, she said the study found an osteoporosis prevalence of 40 percent and an osteopenia prevalence of 43.5 percent. More than 83 percent of the women who took part in the study had a deficiency in bone density.

In addition, an older hospital-based study conducted on women aged 46 to 65 in urban areas found an osteoporosis prevalence of 41.8 percent and an osteopenia prevalence of 40.7 percent.

She said women in developing countries are more affected by this disease than women in developed countries. However, it is difficult to determine the exact statistics on how many women in Bangladesh suffer from osteoporosis. More research and regular screening are needed for this.

Dr Zubaida Rahman emphasised taking appropriate preventive measures for girls and young women to reduce the risk of osteoporosis. She said if necessary steps are taken from childhood, this disease and its complications can be reduced to a great extent in the future. She called for attention to vitamin D deficiency, declining bone mineral density and nutritional issues related to calcium intake in childhood.

She proposed forming a society for osteoporosis prevention, through which coordinated awareness programmes could be run in all 64 districts. She also proposed observing an osteoporosis awareness month every year and organising rallies and campaigns. She stressed organising seminars on modern diagnostic methods for doctors at district hospitals and specialised hospitals, and commented that awareness could also be raised nationwide through the one lakh health workers in service.

She called for organising screening camps to measure bone mineral density and creating opportunities for community-based screening at regular intervals. In areas where there is no facility to measure bone mineral density, she also raised the use of the Fracture Risk Assessment Tool to assess fracture risk.

The event, chaired by DAB President Professor Dr Harun Al Rashid, was also addressed as special guests by BNP Standing Committee member and DAB chief adviser Professor Dr Farhad Halim Doner and Dr Abdus Salam MP. The seminar included a question-and-answer session, a panel discussion and a quiz with the participation of experts. Notably, according to a 2025 statistic, an estimated six million people in Bangladesh suffer from osteoporosis, though the actual number may now be higher, and women are notably more numerous among older patients.