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A Better Approach to Rickets

An Approach to Rickets

A drug commonly used as an anti-inflammatory medication could also help children with an inherited form of rickets avoid complications from their disease, a new study shows.

Rickets, specifically X-linked hypophosphatemia, causes bones to soften and weaken because the kidneys waste phosphate. Phosphate is a primary mineral that combines with calcium to make bones and teeth. Rickets is similar to osteoporosis but occurs in children with growing bones. Not enough phosphate leads to rickets. The condition also causes children to be abnormally short and have problems with their teeth and muscles.

Researchers from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas found an FDA-approved drug called Indomethacin keeps the body from wasting necessary amounts of phosphate without causing the potentially life-threatening complications of conventional therapies. Indomethacin is a drug similar to aspirin or ibuprofen. It is commonly used to relieve pain, swelling and stiffness caused by gout, arthritis and other inflammatory conditions.

Investigators examined mice that have the same genetic mutation as people with X-linked hypophosphatemia and a control group of mice with the same genetic background. The genetically altered mice were injected with Indomethacin twice a day for four days. Researchers found phosphate levels in the altered mice's urine were much lower than before treatment. The drug had no effect on phosphate levels in the control group.

Currently, doctors try to counteract the effect of rickets by prescribing phosphate supplements and vitamin D. This forces the intestines to absorb more phosphate before the body can wash it away. However, this prolonged treatment can damage kidneys.

You will find much more on this topic at WorldsLargestNetwork.com

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