There is a variety of bone diseases, which often have many different causes.
Broken bones
Bone fractures are a complete or incomplete interruption of the bone course. They can be caused either by rapid or permanent overloading of the bone, such as a fall or bruise, or by a disruption of the bone structure caused by a pathological condition. The most common bone fracture in the human body is the fracture of the radius, i.e. the bone of the forearm that is closer to the body when the palm of the hand is resting on it. A special form is the fatigue fracture, which is caused by a long-lasting overload.
Malignant bone tumors
Bone tumors can be divided primarily into malignant and benign tumors and secondarily into tumors and metastases originating from the bone. Among the most prominent representatives of malignant bone tumors are:The Ewing sarcoma is a bone tumor originating from the bone marrow, which can occur between the age of 10 and 30 years. However, children and adolescents up to the age of 15 are mainly affected.
Ewing’s sarcoma occurs less frequently than osteosarcoma. Ewing’s sarcoma is located in the long tubular bones (femur or tibia), as well as in the pelvis or ribs. In principle, however, all bones of the trunk and extremity skeleton can be affected; metastasis is possible mainly in the lungs.
Osteosarcoma is the most common malignant bone tumor with a frequency peak between 16 and 25 years and therefore occurs preferentially in the growth phase. Osteosarcomas tend to metastasize (= colonization of other areas of the body with tumor cells), metastasis is particularly frequent in the area of the lung or into the lymph nodes. Colonization of the lymph nodes is much less frequent.
If the disease is detected early enough, metastasis is preventable. Chondrosarcoma is the second most common malignant bone tumor and is derived from cartilage cells. In rare cases, a chondrosarcoma can also occur at different sites simultaneously. In these cases, one speaks of chondrosarcomatosis.
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