Bone doctors

Until this year, mainland children diagnosed with osteogenesis imperfecta (OI), known more commonly as brittle bone disorder, had little chance of receiving help. Now, that has changed, thanks to the nation's first National Osteoporosis Research Centre at Guangzhou's Nanfang Hospital.

Brittle bone disorder, which affects one in 200,000 people, is a genetic disorder resulting from abnormal genes that control the production of collagen, the protein that gives bone tissue its strength. Due to a weakened bone structure, patients with the disorder are often unable to move their limbs and suffer fractures easily. Some tests are being carried out using growth hormones, but currently there is no treatment other than competent orthopaedic care.

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