What is the average annual rate of bone density loss in women?
1 to 2 percent per year is the average rate of loss of bone density among all healthy postmenopausal women. However, over the course of a woman’s lifetime, rate of bone mineral density loss will vary. The rate of loss differs among different sites in a woman’s body and among women. The range of loss is between less than 1 percent and 5 percent per year. Rates may be higher, at 2 to 4 percent per year, in the first 5 to 10 years after menopause (1). Glucocorticoid therapy also stimulates much more rapid loss, up to 30 percent per year.
