Osteoporosis is a painless and progressive disease that most often affects women after childbearing years and older men. Transient osteoporosis of the hip is an exception. It generally affects pregnant women and middle-aged men and usually goes away by itself. It is also painful.
Living bones are constantly being formed and resorbed. Osteoporosis occurs when the process of resorbtion occurs faster than bone formation.
Important considerations in transient osteoporosis are to distinguish it from avascular necrosis (death of the bone due to loss of blood supply) and to protect the hip from fracture while it is in a weakened state.