Paget's disease

Chronic disease of the bones, characterized by thickening and deformation of bone. Most common sites are the pelvis, lumbar spine (lower back), skull, and long bones. There may be no symptoms or the victim may suffer severe pain. Treatment is with drugs. The condition is common in the UK but rare in Africa, the Middle East and Asia. Its medical name is osteitis deformans. There are hereditary factors associated with it.

It affects slightly more men than women and usually develops after the age of 40. In Britain it occurs in 3–5% of men older than 40, and in the USA there are an estimated 3 million sufferers. It was first described by British physician James Paget.