International Osteoporosis Foundation | |
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Motto | A world without osteoporotic fractures |
Formation | 1998 |
Type | Non-profit organization |
Legal status | Foundation |
Headquarters | Nyon, Switzerland |
Region served | Global |
President | Prof. John A. Kanis |
Main organ | Board of Directors |
Website | www.iofbonehealth.org |
The International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF), headquartered in Nyon, Switzerland, is a non-governmental organization founded in 1998. It was formed from the merger of the European Foundation for Osteoporosis, founded in 1987, and the International Federation of Societies on Skeletal Diseases.[1] The foundation functions as a global alliance of individuals and organizations concerned with the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis and metabolic bone disease. The goal of the foundation is to increase the early detection of osteoporosis, as well as to improve the treatment of the condition through international collaboration among national healthcare systems and governments.[2]
Members of IOF are divided into a committee of National Societies, a Committee of Scientific Advisors, and a Committee of Corporate Advisors. Current president of IOF is Professor John Kanis.[3][4]
Her Majesty Queen Rania Al-Abdullah of Jordan is patron of the International Osteoporosis Foundation.[5][6]
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IOF publishes the public health journal Osteoporosis International[7] and Archives of Osteoporosis[8] (in conjunction with the National Osteoporosis Foundation); Calcified Tissue International;[9] and Progress in Osteoporosis.[10]
International Osteoporosis Foundation organises the annual World Osteoporosis Day, observed internationally on 20 October.[11] The day is dedicated to raising global awareness of the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis.[12][13]
OsteoLink is an online and in-person social networking site launched in 2011, specifically for people with osteoporosis, as well as their friends, families and healthcare professionals.[14] OsteoLink is an initiative of the IOF and the Division of Bone Diseases at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva. It is funded by grants from the European Union and the Swiss Confederation through the Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) Joint Programme on research, Amgen (Europe) GmbH in collaboration with GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), and other partners.[15]
OsteoLink functions at a global and country level, managed by local osteoporosis patient support societies.[16] OsteoLink was created to improve communication between people with osteoporosis (a disease which affects 1 in 3 post‐menopausal women and 1 in 5 men worldwide[17]) and their health professionals, following a report which indicated physicians underestimate the emotional and physical impact of the disease.[16]
The report, titled ‘The gaps between patient and physician understanding of the emotional and physical impact of osteoporosis’ found physicians underestimate how many patients worry about breaking a bone, as well as patient concerns about a decline in activity levels and loss of independence.[18]
OsteoLink was trialled with a pilot programme in 2010, and officially launched in Austria[19] and Sweden[20] in March, 2011.[21]
The International Osteoporosis Foundation was established in 1998 with the merger of the European Foundation for Osteoporosis (EFFO) and the International Federation of Societies on Skeletal Diseases (IFSSD).[22] In 2008 IOF was granted Roster Consultative Status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council.[23]
The IOF World Congress on Osteoporosis is organized by the IOF secretariat and held every two years, in even numbered years. The first was held in 2000 at Chicago, Illinois. The 2008 congress was cancelled because of political unrest in Bangkok, Thailand. It is the world's largest conference devoted solely to the topic of osteoporosis.[24] The Pierre Delmas Prize, named after the late president of the IOF, is presented at the conference.[25]