New Portal Spotlights Spine Disorders and Their Treatment

A new web-based information portal that focuses on disorders of the aging spine and their treatment has been launched for the benefit of healthcare providers and patients.

The Aging Spine Center website was developed by Alphatec Spine (Carlsbad, CA, USA) in collaboration with the U.S. National Osteoporosis Foundation (Washington, DC, USA) as well as other clinical portals that provide peer-reviewed content. The interactive website will enable patients to review pertinent information about all the key disorders that affect the aging spine in an easy-to-understand format that includes videos, graphics, and questions that should be asked of caregivers. Medical information will include published abstracts regarding the aging spine.

"Fractures related to osteoporosis have a serious medical, emotional and economic impact on individuals and our nation as a whole, and educating healthcare professionals and the general public on how to prevent, diagnose and treat osteoporosis is our first line of defense against the disease,” said Leo Schargorodski, Executive Director of the U.S. National Osteoporosis Foundation.

"By 2015 the number of elderly spine patients will increase by 43%, representing the fastest growing sub-segment of patients suffering from back pain in the United States,” said Robin Young, CEO and founder of RRY Publications, which will provide medical abstracts for the new website. "These elderly spine patients and their unique, complex issues have largely been ignored by traditional spinal implant manufacturers. Alphatec Spine's new Aging Spine Center website is a welcome and far-sighted initiative to address this monumental unmet need.”

"Our goal is to have the Aging Spine Center website be the leading website solely focused on providing current and relevant information for healthcare providers and the general public on the medical conditions that affect the aging spine and treatment options that are available,” said Dirk Kuyper, President and CEO of Alphatec Spine.

Aging spine patients (65 years and older) suffer from conditions such as osteoporosis (which results in 700,000 annual vertebral compression fractures in the United States alone), adult scoliosis (which is prevalent in this age group), and spondylolisthesis (which afflicts 12% of men and 30% of women in the aging population). According to the U.S. National Osteoporosis Foundation, one in two women and one in four men over age 50 will break a bone due to osteoporosis; the organization estimates that 10 million North Americans currently suffer from osteoporosis and 34 million more are at risk of developing it.

Related Links:
The Aging Spine Center
Alphatec Spine
U.S. National Osteoporosis Foundation