RESEARCH Open Access A descriptive study of kno

Full list of author information is available at the end of the articleBackground Osteoporosis is a global health problem. Osteoporosis and fractures secondary to osteoporosis are an important cause of mortality and morbidity [1]. Approximately 1.6 million hip fractures occur each year worldwide, the in-cidence is set to increase to 6.3 million by 2050 [1]. Due to increasing proportions of ageing populations in the Asian region, osteoporosis has become more preva-lent and increases the health care expenditure in this region [2,3]. As osteoporosis is a silent disease, it is in-tuitive that primary preventive measures including early detection of risk factors for osteoporosis, educating the individuals at risk on preventive measures, and timely intervention with regard to treatment will reduce the morbidity and mortality and cut down the cost of treat-ment [4,5]