Dr. Jawl-Shan Hwang is an Assistant Professor in Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Internal Medicine, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, and executive director and former president of the Taiwanese Osteoporosis Association, and immediate past President of AFOS.
He obtained his MD degree from the China Medical University, Taiwan in 1992 and completed his medical residency and chief residency at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taipei. In recent years, he has also been an investigator of the osteoporosis and diabetes clinical trials; he is currently actively involved in the consensus consultation and multi-disciplinary care of fracture prevention works, including osteoporosis fractures with comorbidities, osteoporosis epidemiology, fracture liaison service, and osteoporosis treatment guideline of Taiwan. He is also experienced in diabetes complication and endocrine related osteoporosis. His research interests include the treatment and experimental therapy in osteoporosis, diabetes and endocrine disease.
21 MARCH
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Session |
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08:30
10:00
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Osteoporosis and Bone Health
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Daisuke InoueJapan
Speaker
New Concept in Osteoporosis Management- Japnaese Perspectives Operational definition of osteoporosis by WHO is currently "a BMD value -2.5SD or more below the young adult mean", which has been used worldwide for twenty years. WHO has recently initiated a process to revisit this definition as it is not sensitive enough to identify individuals at high risk of fracture, leading to unsatisfactory treatment of patients. Importantly, a history of fracture, particularly within the past two years (termed imminent fracture risk) has been shown to significantly contribute to the risk of subsequent fractures.
Regarding a surrogate for evaluating the clinical efficacy of anti-osteoporotic drugs, a proposal from the FNIH-ASBMR-SABRE project has been submitted to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This proposal suggests that treatment-related increases in total hip BMD (TH-BMD) at two years could serve as a surrogate endpoint for fracture risk reduction in clinical trials. This is primarily based on the negative correlation observed between increases in total hip BMD and decreases in the incidence of hip fracture in various clinical trials of anti-osteoporotic drugs demonstrated by a meta-regression analysis.
The significant role of BMD as a surrogate, along with availability of bone anabolic agents that can greatly increase BMD for a short period of time, has led to the concept of "Goal-directed treatment" of osteoporosis. Accordingly, "anabolic first" sequential therapy is recommended for individuals at high risk of fractures.
In Japan, new Guidelines for Prevention and Treatment of Osteoporosis were issued on August 1, 2025. Recent trends in osteoporosis management, as described above, will be discussed in the context of these Japanese guidelines.
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Wen-Pin YangTaiwan
Speaker
Metabolic Bone Disorder in ThalassemiaIntroduction:
Thalassemia-associated osteoporosis (TAO) is a prevalent and debilitating complication in adult patients with β-thalassemia major (β-TM), despite advancements in transfusion and chelation therapies. Given the complexity of its pathogenesis, TAO presents a unique challenge to endocrinologists, requiring a nuanced understanding of the interplay between ineffective erythropoiesis, iron overload, and the endocrine axis.
Pathogenesis & Endocrine Involvement:
The aetiology of TAO is multifactorial. Chronic ineffective erythropoiesis leads to bone marrow expansion, causing mechanical disruption of the trabecular microarchitecture. Simultaneously, systemic iron overload (hemosiderosis) exerts direct toxicity on osteoblasts and induces secondary endocrine failures. Clinical evidence demonstrates that BMD in β-TM patients is significantly correlated with multiple endocrine parameters: it is negatively associated with TSH, HbA1c, iPTH, and FGF23 levels, while positively correlating with testosterone and IGF-1. Pituitary and thyroid hemosiderosis are major drivers of impaired peak bone mass accrual and accelerated bone loss.
Diagnostic Considerations:
While Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) remains the standard for monitoring, its accuracy is often limited by scoliosis, vertebral deformities, and marrow expansion. Complementary tools, such as bone turnover markers (CTX and P1NP) and opportunistic QCT, are essential for a comprehensive skeletal assessment and for identifying patients at high risk for fragility fractures.
Therapeutic Strategies:
Management requires a multidisciplinary approach beyond optimizing iron chelation and Vitamin D status. Antiresorptive agents, particularly Zoledronate and Denosumab, are effective in increasing BMD and reducing bone pain. However, in severe cases with prevalent fractures, anabolic therapy with Teriparatide has demonstrated superior efficacy, with significant BMD gains in both the lumbar spine and femoral neck. This presentation will emphasize the "sequential therapy" model—initiating with anabolic agents followed by antiresorptives—to maximize and maintain skeletal recovery.
Conclusion:
TAO requires lifelong vigilance and a tailored treatment plan. Early intervention targeting endocrine deficiencies and the strategic application of sequential pharmacological therapies are vital to preventing fractures and improving the quality of life for this aging population.
201AF
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13:30
15:00
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Musculoskeletal and Skeletal Complications of Diabetes Mellitus
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Jia-Feng ChenTaiwan
Speaker
Diabetes and Osteoarthritis: Metabolic Links and Clinical Implications
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Tung-Wei KaoTaiwan
Speaker
Sarcopenia in Diabetes: Pathophysiology, Diagnosis, and Management
102
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