Definition for Paget's disease
From Biology Forums Dictionary
Paget's disease causes a malfunction in the normal process of bone remodeling. Normally, bone is continually breaking down and rebuilding. This usually slow process of bone destruction and growth is somehow altered and speeded up in Paget's disease producing a lot of "young bone" which is soft and porous. Soft bone can be weak and easily bend, leading to shortening of the affected part of the body. The bone replacement also takes place very quickly and excess bone may be formed. This can cause the bone to get larger, be painful and break easily.
The bone affected by Paget's disease also tends to have more blood vessels than normal. This causes an increase in the blood supply to the area, and as a result the area may feel warmer than usual.
The disease can affect any bone but more commonly affects the spine, pelvis, skull, thighbone (femur – pronounced fee-mer) and shinbone (tibia – pronounced ti-bee-ah).
Paget's disease can lead to other medical conditions including osteoarthritis, kidney stones and heart disease.
Paget's disease is also called osteitis (pronounced ah-stee-eye-tis) deformans. It is named after Sir James Paget, an English doctor who first described the disease in 1876.
