It wouldn't be surprising if the recent results of the GLOW study on the bone health of 60,000 women from around the world -- particularly the conclusion that women over age 50 have a 50-50 risk of experiencing an osteoporosis-related fracture -- had a lot to do with a proposed draft of expanded recommendations for osteoporosis screenings issued by the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force in early July. What may be surprising to some of you: Men are mentioned briefly in these new recommendations.

Guidelines issued eight years ago called for routine screenings for women older than age 64 and those between ages 60-64 with an increased risk of fractures, but no recommendations for men.

This newest proposal expands recommended osteoporosis screenings to include all younger postmenopausal women if their risk of breaking a bone over a decade -- due to family medical histories or poor lifestyle habits -- is equal to or greater than that of the typical 65-year-old woman. And, as far as the bone health of men goes, even though it was mentioned, the evidence was far from conclusive about the benefit or harm of screening older men, so no recommendations are forthcoming.

One major concern voiced by some medical experts: This review didn't include results from studies in which more than 20 percent of the patients had experienced an osteoporosis-related fracture, resulting in an exclusion of major treatment trials, thus narrowing any reporting on their effectiveness.

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Draft Recommendation Statement July 6, 2010 Free Full Text Article

Annals of Internal Medicine July 5, 2010 Free Full Text Study

MedPage Today July 6, 2010

MSNBC July 5, 2010