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The main symptom of osteoporosis is breaking bones because they have gotten weak. You can't feel them getting weak and you don't usually look any different on the outside.

You may not know you have osteoporosis until you break a bone.¹

When you break a bone, doctors say you have a fracture. The bone might be snapped right across, like when you break one of the long bones in your arms or legs. Or it might be crushed. This is more likely if you break a bone in your spine.

Lots of people break their bones without having osteoporosis. But this is usually because they have a bad accident, like a big fall or a car crash. If you have osteoporosis, your bones are so weak that you can break them from a gentle bump, lifting something heavy or even just sneezing.²

The symptoms you get depend on which bones get broken. With osteoporosis, you are most likely to break the ones in your spine, hip and wrist.³

Here are some facts about broken bones in your spine.

• This is the most common fracture caused by osteoporosis. About 1 in 5 white women get a broken bone in their spine during their lifetime.³
• You may not feel any pain at all when you break a bone in your spine. Or you may feel a sudden bad pain in your back.
• If you break several bones in your spine, you may get shorter. Your spine may start to bend over, too. This is sometimes called a dowager's hump or widow's hump.
• Because you don't always get bad pain, you may confuse fractures of your spine with other diseases like rheumatoid arthritis.⁴
• Most fractures of the spine caused by osteoporosis gradually heal by themselves. But if you suspect you have fractured your spine (if you get a sudden unexplained back pain, for example), see your doctor. You may need treatment in the hospital.

Here are some facts about broken bones in your hip.

• This is the second most common fracture caused by osteoporosis. About 1 in 6 white women get a broken bone in their hip during their lifetime.³
• If you break your hip, you get bad pain right away. You won't be able to stand on it.
• You will need to stay in the hospital for treatment until your hip heals. And you may need an operation.

Here are some facts about broken bones in your wrist.

• This is the third most common fracture caused by osteoporosis. About 1 in 7 white women break a bone in their wrist during their lifetime.³
• If you break your wrist, you get bad pain right away. And your wrist or arm may swell up.
• You may need to go to the hospital for treatment. And you will have to wear a cast on your wrist until it heals.

This information is for educational use only, and is not a substitute for prompt professional medical advice. Readers should always consult a physician or other professional for advice and treatment. ©BMJ Publishing Group Limited 2008. All rights reserved.