Osteomalacia Health, Medicine, Nursing Research Paper (Research Paper Sample)

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Osteomalacia
Etiology and Normal Physiology
Osteomalacia is a condition characterized by unusually soft bones. Normally, bones are made up of hard outer shell (the cortex) which is also made up of minerals such as calcium and phosphorous. The inner part of the bone, on the other hand, is made up of the collagen fibers. The strength of any bone depends on the amount of minerals deposited on the bone tissue through the process of mineralization (Deepak, Tehseen and Ashok, p. 23). Osteomalacia occurs when the process of bone mineralization is affected, leading to bones with more of collagen matrix than the mineral covering. Such bones are unusually softer compared to the bones that have had proper mineralization process. The danger of having such bones is that they can easily crack, and can be very painful.
There are rarer types of osteomalacia that often occurs due to problems in the kidney, leading to loss of phosphorous. This rare type of osteomalacia is sometimes inherited and can therefore be passed from parent to child through certain genes. In rare occasions, certain osteomalacia can be caused by the side effects of some drugs.