Abstract
Endemic skeletal fluorosis is widely prevalent in India and is a major public health problem. The first ever report of endemic skeletal fluorosis and neurological manifestation was from Prakasam district in Andhra Pradesh in the year 1937. Epidemiological and experimental studies in the endemic areas suggest the role of temperate climate, hard physical labor, nutritional status, presence of abnormal concentrations of trace elements like strontium, uranium, silica in water supplies, high fluoride levels in foods and presence of kidney disease in the development of skeletal fluorosis. Neurological complications of endemic skeletal fluorosis, namely radiculopathy, myelopathy or both are mechanical in nature and till date the evidence for direct neurotoxicity of fluoride is lacking. Prevention of the disease should be the aim, knowing the pathogenesis of fluorosis. Surgery has a limited role in alleviating the neurological disability and should be tailored to the individual based on the imaging findings.
-
-
The spectrum of radiographic bone changes in children with fluorosis
Painful, crippling deformities in Tanzanian children from an area of endemic fluorosis are reported. Excessive fluoride ingestion in pregnant women may possibly poison and alter enzyme and hormonal systems in the fetus causing disturbances to osteoid formation and mineralization. Knock-knees, bowlegs, and saber shins develop when walking begins. Combinations of osteomalacia, osteoporosis,
-
Fluoride osteosclerosis
1. Twenty-three cases of fluoride osteosclerosis are presented. 2. These cases were gathered from 170,000 roentgenographic examinations of the spine and pelvis of patients living in Texas and Oklahoma where many communities have excessive fluoride content in their drinking water. 3. In each case, adequate clinical examination failed to establish any relationship
-
Brick tea fluoride as a main source of adult fluorosis
An epidemiological survey was conducted in Naqu County, Tibet in September 2001 to investigate the manifestations of fluorosis in adults caused by the habitual consumption of brick tea. Profiles were obtained for the total daily fluoride intake, environmental fluoride levels and average urinary fluoride concentration, and a physical examination and a
-
Skeletal fluorosis in a resettled refugee from Kakuma refugee camp.
“I suspected some contamination of the water of the much-frequented street pump in Broad Street, near the end of Cambridge Street”, said John Snow, about the contaminated water pump of the cholera outbreak of 1854, in London, UK.1 In September, 2015, a Somalian man aged 46 years presented to a refugee
-
Nutritional bone disease in Indian population
Syndromes of bone disease and deformities consequent to disorders of nutrition, bone and mineral metabolism constitute a serious national health problem. The studies on this subject are scanty. Data on nutritional bone disease are described and discussed. We had surveyed 337.68 million population residing in 0.39 million villages in 22
Related Studies :
-
-
-
Variability in Radiographic Appearance of Skeletal Fluorosis
Osteosclerosis (dense bone) is the bone change typically associated with skeletal fluorosis, particularly in the axial skeleton (spine, pelvis, and ribs). Research shows, however, that skeletal fluorosis produces a spectrum of bone changes, including osteomalacia, osteoporosis, exostoses, changes resulting from secondary hyperparathyroidism, and combinations thereof. Although the reason for this radiographic variability is not yet fully understood, it is believed to relate to the dose of fluoride consumed, the individual's nutritional status, exposure to aluminum, genetic susceptibility, presence of kidney disease, and area of the skeleton examined.
-
"Pre-Skeletal" Fluorosis
As demonstrated by the studies below, skeletal fluorosis may produce adverse symptoms, including arthritic pains, clinical osteoarthritis, gastrointestinal disturbances, and bone fragility, before the classic bone change of fluorosis (i.e., osteosclerosis in the spine and pelvis) is detectable by x-ray. Relying on x-rays, therefore, to diagnosis skeletal fluorosis will invariably fail to protect those individuals who are suffering from the pre-skeletal phase of the disease. Moreover, some individuals with clinical skeletal fluorosis will not develop an increase in bone density, let alone osteosclerosis, of the spine. Thus, relying on unusual increases in spinal bone density will under-detect the rate of skeletal fluoride poisoning in a population.
-
Fluoride & Osteoarthritis
While the osteoarthritic effects that occurred from fluoride exposure were once considered to be limited to those with skeletal fluorosis, recent research shows that fluoride can cause osteoarthritis in the absence of traditionally defined fluorosis. Conventional methods used for detecting skeletal fluorosis, therefore, will fail to detect the full range of people suffering from fluoride-induced osteoarthritis.
-
Skeletal Fluorosis: The Misdiagnosis Problem
It is a virtual certainty that there are individuals in the general population unknowingly suffering from some form of skeletal fluorosis as a result of a doctor's failure to consider fluoride as a cause of their symptoms. Proof that this is the case can be found in the following case reports of skeletal fluorosis written by doctors in the U.S. and other western countries. As can be seen, a consistent feature of these reports is that fluorosis patients--even those with crippling skeletal fluorosis--are misdiagnosed for years by multiple teams of doctors who routinely fail to consider fluoride as a possible cause of their disease.
-
Fluoride & Osteopetrosis
One of the most common radiological findings in skeletal fluorosis is osteosclerosis - a hardening of bones with a blurring of the trabecular structure. In advanced cases, the osteosclerotic form of fluorosis may closely resemble the appearance of osteopetrosis, a "marble bone" disease in which the bones are dense, but fragile and prone to fracture.
Related FAN Content :
-