Goshen Retreat Women’s Health Center

Taking care of bone health

Maintaining strong bone health matters. That's why we take a proactive approach to bone health at Goshen Retreat Women's Health Center. Our approach includes regularly measuring the amount of bone present with a bone density test.

Bones, like other organs in our body, constantly change. They continue to grow in strength and size throughout childhood and as we become young adults. Around age 35, bones reach their peak strength and then naturally become weaker as we age. Once bones become weak to the point of breaking, a condition called osteoporosis occurs and can result in painful and crippling fractures, usually in the hip, back or wrist.

Some of the warning signs associated with osteoporosis include:

  1. Loss of height
  2. Sharp back pain
  3. Fractures of the wrist, spine and/or hip
  4. Curvature of the upper back
  5. Dental problems caused by a shrinking jawbone

Unfortunately, osteoporosis rarely shows these warning signs until much bone has been lost.

How we test bone density

We offer a state-of-the-art GE Lunar™ bone densitometer for measuring bone density. This highly sensitive densitometer provides a safe, painless and non-invasive procedure that identifies bone loss at the major fracture sites in just minutes. It is also an effective tool for tracking bone changes and providing information about your risk for bone fracture. Knowing your risk for fracture is important because there are numerous ways to reduce that risk and prevent osteoporosis. Exercise, diet changes, hormone therapy and other medicines are examples that have proved successful for building bone strength.

Bone density tests take about 30 minutes and require a physician’s referral.

Please contact Goshen Retreat Women's Health Center at (574) 364-4600 to schedule an appointment.