Prevalence of osteoporosis in Colombia: Data from the National Health Registry from 2012 to 2018

Introduction: Osteoporosis is considered a healthcare problem due to the increased risk of fractures and high cost of care. In Colombia, the Ministry of Health introduced SISPRO, a tool to collect nationwide information from the health system. The information collected from SISPRO is available for scientific analysis. This article presents an analysis of the prevalence and characteristics of patients with osteoporosis using data from 2012 to 2018. Aim: To estimate prevalence of osteoporosis between January 2012 to December 2018 and describe the patients’ demographic characteristics. Methods: This is a descriptive epidemiological study using the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems related to osteoporosis as search terms using the SISPRO database. Results: National records report 249,803 patients over 50 years old diagnosed with osteoporosis. The estimated prevalence is 2,440 cases per 100,000 inhabitants over 50 years old (based on a total population of 10,236,132), being more frequent in women (92% of cases), with a female/male ratio of 12.3:1. Conclusion: This study shows a lower prevalence than previous estimates or projections. Given these findings we think it is necessary to act to promote health policies for patients with osteoporosis.