Abstract
Osteoporosis is distinguished by low bone mineral density (BMD), worsening bone microarchitecture, and increased risk for fractures. Heritability data show that genetic factors determine up to 80% of the variance in BMD,1,2 which is a major predictor of osteoporotic fractures. While the genes that contribute to differences in risk for osteoporosis and osteoporotic fractures are for the most part unknown, it is thought that the risk of developing osteoporosis is dependent on several common gene variants, each with modest effects.3,4