2006年VOA标准英语-Study: Hip Fractures Set to Become Global Epide

By David McAlary
Washington
15 June 2006

Australian and British researchers say the number of fractured hips² is expected to nearly quadruple worldwide by mid-century as the population ages. This means an increasing burden on health care systems unless measures are taken to stem the rise.

----------------------------------------

University of Sydney bone specialist Philip Sambrook says one out of two women will break a bone during their lifetime, while the figure for men is one out of three or four.

  
  
The risk increases with age as bones become less dense³ and brittle⁴ with a disease called osteoporosis. Of all the bones that can be broken, Sambrook says hip¹ fractures are the most devastating⁵.

"A hip fracture is quite critical. It often means that people die in the first six months afterwards or are institutionalized," he explained. " They do not get back to their usual home."

Sambrook and a British colleague at the University of Southampton report in the journal "Lancet" that broken hips cost the world about $132 billion in direct and indirect costs in 1997, and the cost is rising because people over age 65 are becoming a bigger share of the population.

After reviewing many studies conducted in the past several years, they estimate that if the incidence of hip fracture remains⁶ as it is today, there will be more than six million cases in the year 2050, almost four times as many as there were in 1990.

But they note that fracture rates seem to be rising in many parts of the world, meaning there could be many millions more.

  
  
"Because this costs money, it is a burden not just for patients but it is quite a burden for government," he said. "We are all living longer and for whatever reason, perhaps because we are not having as much calcium⁷ in our diets or not exercising as much, some of these lifestyle factors that increase the risk mean that it is going to become an epidemic⁸ in the future."

Sambrook says drugs known as bisphosphonates have been the biggest advance against osteoporosis in the past decade. But they and other treatments reduce the risk of fractures only by half. With the number of worldwide fractures expected to grow dramatically, he says better therapies are needed.

He also says public health systems must make diagnosis⁹ of brittle bone disease more widespread for those at greatest risk. The standard test is a scan that determines bone mineral density¹⁰.

"If we look ahead, we can often prevent this problem rather than waiting until it occurs," he noted¹¹. "So I think increased awareness¹² of the condition and ways to reduce its impact are very important."

1 hip   

n.臀部，髋；屋脊

参考例句：

• The thigh bone is connected to the hip bone.股骨连着髋骨。
• The new coats blouse gracefully above the hip line.新外套在臀围线上优美地打着褶皱。

2 hips   

abbr.high impact polystyrene 高冲击强度聚苯乙烯，耐冲性聚苯乙烯n.臀部( hip的名词复数 )；[建筑学]屋脊；臀围（尺寸）；臀部…的

参考例句：

• She stood with her hands on her hips. 她双手叉腰站着。
• They wiggled their hips to the sound of pop music. 他们随着流行音乐的声音摇晃着臀部。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 dense   

a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的

参考例句：

• The general ambushed his troops in the dense woods. 将军把部队埋伏在浓密的树林里。
• The path was completely covered by the dense foliage. 小路被树叶厚厚地盖了一层。

4 brittle   

adj.易碎的；脆弱的；冷淡的；(声音)尖利的

参考例句：

• The pond was covered in a brittle layer of ice.池塘覆盖了一层易碎的冰。
• She gave a brittle laugh.她冷淡地笑了笑。

5 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

6 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

7 calcium   

n.钙(化学符号Ca)

参考例句：

• We need calcium to make bones.我们需要钙来壮骨。
• Calcium is found most abundantly in milk.奶含钙最丰富。

8 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。

9 diagnosis   

n.诊断，诊断结果，调查分析，判断

参考例句：

• His symptoms gave no obvious pointer to a possible diagnosis.他的症状无法作出明确的诊断。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做一次彻底的调查分析。

10 density   

n.密集，密度，浓度

参考例句：

• The population density of that country is 685 per square mile.那个国家的人口密度为每平方英里685人。
• The region has a very high population density.该地区的人口密度很高。

11 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

12 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。