The perspective of the International Osteoporosis Foundation on the official positions of the International Society for Clinical Densitometry

Association of hospital-initiated bone densitometry with hospitalization for fragility fracture at Lille University Hospital among adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

A retrospective study was conducted to calculate the cumulative incidence of hospital-initiated bone densitometry, in the year following hospitalization for fragility fracture in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. This cohort study demonstrated low rates of hospital-initiated bone densitometry with a 1-year cumulative incidence of 22.6%.

BACKGROUND

Osteoporosis is one of the most frequent comorbidities in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients. A study was conducted to assess the management of osteoporosis in COPD patients using the INCLUDE health data warehouse.

OBJECTIVES

The primary objective was to calculate the cumulative incidence of hospital-initiated bone densitometry, in the year following hospitalization for fragility fracture in COPD patients.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

A retrospective, monocentric, observational study was conducted at Lille University Hospital with patients identified from January 2013 to December 2021. Patients with COPD, aged 40 or over, and hospitalized for a fragility fracture according to the ICD-10 classification were included. Bone densitometry was indexed according to French Common Procedures Classification (CCAM) acts by INCLUDE.

RESULTS

A total of 365 patients (~ 60% male, mean age 73.5 ± 12.3 years, and median Charlson score 2.0 (1.0; 4.0)) were included. Hospitalization units for fractures were orthopedics (n = 168), geriatrics (n = 46), rheumatology (n = 45), pneumology (n = 24), and others (n = 82). A total of 499 fractures were identified, most of them severe (hip (36.4%), vertebrae (30.1%), proximal humerus (11.5%), pelvis (10.7%), etc.). During the first year, 69 patients (18.9%) died, and 81 underwent hospital-initiated bone densitometry. The cumulative incidence of bone densitometry in the 1st year was 22.6% [CI 95% 18.3-27.1%]. Independent determinants of performing bone densitometry were female gender, low Charlson score, hospitalization in rheumatology, and vertebral fracture(s).

CONCLUSION

The cumulative incidence of hospital-initiated bone densitometry, within 1 year of hospitalization for a fragility fracture in COPD patients was relatively low.

Effect of Discordant Hip Bone Density on Incident Fracture Risk: A Registry-Based Cohort Study

The Fracture Risk Assessment Tool (FRAX®) combines clinical risk factors and optionally femoral neck bone density to estimate major osteoporotic fracture (MOF) and hip fracture probability. Hip dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) simultaneously measures the trochanter and total hip, but these regions are not considered by FRAX. Our aim was to determine whether discordance in trochanter and total hip bone density (defined as ≥1 T-score difference from the femoral neck) affects fracture risk adjusted for fracture probability. Using the Manitoba bone density registry, we identified 84,773 women and men age 40 years or older undergoing baseline hip DXA. The outcomes were incident MOF and hip fracture. Cox regression hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) adjusted for baseline fracture probability were used to test the association between hip T-score discordance and incident fractures. Hip T-score discordance affected more than one in five subjects (trochanter lower in 3.9%, higher in 14.2%; total hip lower in 0.3%, higher in 14.9%). After mean 8.8 years there were 8444 incident MOF including 2664 hip fractures. Discordantly lower trochanter and lower total hip T-score (≥1 below femoral neck) was associated with increased risk for MOF (adjusted HRs 1.47 and 1.60) and hip fracture (HRs 1.85 and 2.12), while discordantly higher trochanter and total hip T-score (≥1 above femoral neck) was associated with lower risk for MOF (HRs 0.83 and 0.71) and hip fracture (HRs 0.79 and 0.68). In models that examined the trochanter and total hip simultaneously, discordantly lower trochanter T-score was associated with increased incident MOF and hip fracture risk (HRs 1.43 and 1.79) whereas discordantly higher total hip T-score was associated with lower risk (HRs 0.73 and 0.75). In conclusion, trochanter and total hip regions frequently show T-scores that are discordant with the femoral neck. This information strongly affects incident fracture risk independent of fracture probability scores computed with femoral neck bone density. © 2022 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR).

Effects of Three Interventions Combining Impact or Walking at Intense Pace Training, with or without Calcium and Vitamin Supplements, to Manage Postmenopausal Women with Osteopenia and Osteoporosis

The purpose was to assess the effects of three interventions on bone mineral density (BMD) to prevent the onset or progression of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women. Specifically, thirty-nine postmenopausal women, diagnosed with osteopenia or osteoporosis, implemented either high-impact training (G1), the same training + calcium and vitamin D intake (G2), or walked at an intense pace + calcium and vitamin D (G3). Baseline change (BC) in BMD was estimated using the femoral neck and lumbar spine T-scores. Participants were classified as having suffered fractures and/or falls before (24-month) and during the 2-year intervention. The participants-aged 61.8 years-were allocated into G1 (n = 9), G2 (n = 16), and G3 (n = 14). The groups evolved similarly over time; however, participants in G2 exhibited the largest T-score improvements with BC over 20%. G1 and G3 maintained BMD levels (BC = -7 to 13.3%; p > 0.05). Falls occurred similarly across the interventions, while the participants in G2 had the lowest percentage of fracture events (p = 0.037). Overall, the findings suggest that regular physical exercise may be effective in maintaining or improving BMD in postmenopausal women presenting with osteopenia or osteoporosis. Due to the limited sample size, the results are preliminary and warrant future randomized trials to validate the findings.

Recent developments towards closing the gap in osteoporosis management

Background

A fracture that occurs in people with low bone mass in the setting of minimal trauma—such as a fall from standing height—meets the criteria for the clinical diagnosis of osteoporosis and qualifies this particular individual for being at high risk of further fractures, particularly in the first 2 years after the index fracture. Therefore, it is vital to identify those individuals at very high and high fracture risk with the potential of instantly starting osteoporosis therapy.

Main body

Currently, there are unmet needs in the management of bone fragility and fracture prevention. Therefore, re-stratification of the people according to their risk of fracture, and, also, identify what is and is not achievable using different osteoporosis therapies, represent a major step forward. In 2020, the dichotomisation of high risk into high and very high-risk categories, which represent a new concept in osteoporosis assessment, was published by the IOF and the ESCEO. This coincided with proliferation of the available therapies with different modes of action and new therapeutic targets for treating osteoporosis. Fear of complications, even though rare, associated with long-term bisphosphonates and the positive impact of osteoanabolic agents on fracture reduction and bone quality, have changed the prescribing patterns and paved the way for sequential and combined therapy.

Conclusion

The incorporation of recent concepts in osteoporosis and the development of new interventional thresholds have positive implication on strategies for osteoporotic patients’ diagnosis and management.

Osteoporosis in Polish Older Women: Risk Factors and Osteoporotic Fractures: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background: Osteoporosis is a skeletal disease. It is still not known which of the risk factors have the greatest impact on osteoporosis development. The study aimed to determine how the selected osteoporosis risk factors contribute to the development of the disease and to assess the risk of osteoporotic fractures in older women. Methods: A cohort of 99 older females was divided into two groups (with and without osteoporosis). The risk of osteoporosis was determined using assessment forms and bone densitometry data subjected to logistic regression. The risk of osteoporotic fractures was assessed by the FRAX tool (FRAX, Center for Metabolic Bone Diseases, University of Sheffield, UK). Results: The logistic regression analysis showed that the highest risk of developing osteoporosis associated with lifestyle, mainly cigarette smoking (odds ratio: OR = 2.12), past gynecological operations (OR = 1.46), corticosteroid therapies (OR = 1.38). More than half of participants were at a medium risk of femoral neck fractures (over 90% in the osteoporotic group). Conclusion: Most of the Polish women living in care facilities are at medium risk of low-energy fractures. Smoking appeared to have the strongest effect on osteoporosis among analyzed risk factors. The results may contribute to the creation of more appropriate prevention strategies.

A decade of FRAX: how has it changed the management of osteoporosis?

The fracture risk assessment tool, FRAX^®, was released in 2008 and provides country-specific algorithms for estimating individualized 10-year probability of hip and major osteoporotic fracture (hip, clinical spine, distal forearm, and proximal humerus). Since its release, 71 models have been made available for 66 countries covering more than 80% of the world population. The website receives approximately 3 million visits annually. Following independent validation, FRAX has been incorporated into more than 80 guidelines worldwide. The application of FRAX in assessment guidelines has been heterogeneous with the adoption of several different approaches in setting intervention thresholds. Whereas most guidelines adopt a case-finding strategy, the case for FRAX-based community screening in the elderly is increasing. The relationship between FRAX and efficacy of intervention has been explored and is expected to influence treatment guidelines in the future.

Age, race, weight, and gender impact normative values of bone mineral density

BACKGROUND

Osteoporosis and fractures represent a major public health issue. Accurate normative reference bone mineral density (BMD) values are vital for diagnosing osteoporosis. The generalizability of the T-score method across gender, race, and age in clinic decision-making has been debated. Our aim was to identify the best statistical model to derive normative BMD values in both men and women in the multiethnic United States population.

METHODS

The Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey was used as a data source. Gender- and race/ethnicity-stratified data analyses and modeling were conducted on 9779 persons (ages 20 to 65 years) who reported no conditions or medications likely to affect bone metabolism. Sampling and design effects were addressed using STATA 10. Model comparisons were conducted by partial F tests and residual plots.

RESULTS

Polynomial regression provided a statistically significant better fit than linear regression in predicting normative BMD in both men and women. Age-centered polynomial models provided the best model for predicting normative BMD values.

CONCLUSION

The gender- and race-specific lower limit of normal values obtained created a new classification method of low BMD, which might mitigate some of the T-score limitations in men and minority populations.

Radiological and histologic studies of the mandibular cortex of ovariectomized monkeys

OBJECTIVE

The objective was to study the radiological and histologic changes in the mandibular cortices of ovariectomized monkeys.

STUDY DESIGN

Twelve female, adult, Cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) were used. Under anesthesia, 1 group was bilaterally ovariectomized (OVX), and the other (control group) underwent sham surgery. Seventy-six weeks after surgery, the monkeys were humanely killed, their mandibles were excised, and their mandibular inferior cortices (MIC) and adjacent cortices were examined histologically and with panoramic radiographs and micro computed tomography.

RESULTS

Striped shadows were seen on the endosteal side of the OVX cortices on panoramic radiographs. Histologic observation revealed many enlarged pores with eroded surfaces and calcein labeling (indicating osteon remodeling) in the OVX cortices.

CONCLUSIONS

In the MIC and adjacent cortices of OVX monkeys, enlarged Haversian canals were seen and there were indications of a high rate of bone turnover. The enlarged Haversian canals resulted in striped shadows and unclear endosteal margins on radiographic images.

Cephalomedullary screws as the standard proximal locking screws for nailing femoral shaft fractures

OBJECTIVES

In 2004, we modified our technique for the stabilization of femoral shaft fractures so that all fractures were stabilized using a reconstruction nail with proximal locking screws oriented into the femoral head. The rationale for this was twofold: first, potentially "missed" associated femoral neck fractures would be stabilized. Second, hip fractures that might occur later in life above the intramedullary nail might be avoided. The purpose of this study therefore was to determine whether there were any risks to patients treated for femoral shaft fractures with antegrade nails using cephalomedullary proximal locking screws.

DESIGN

Retrospective.

SETTING

Two regional trauma centers.

PATIENTS/PARTICIPANTS

Eighty-seven consecutive patients were treated for a femoral shaft fracture treated with antegrade femoral nailing with a cephalomedullary locked nail.

INTERVENTION

Reamed, trochanteric insertion of an intramedullary nail with proximal locking screws placed in a cephalomedullary direction.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENT

Patient and injury data, radiographic analyses, and complications of treatment were assessed at a minimum of 12 months.

RESULTS

Sixty-one of 87 patients (70%) were available at a mean of 19.8 months (range, 12-44 months). Sixty of 61 fractures united after the index procedure. Complications included one delayed union successfully treated with exchange nailing, one distal locking screw fracture (allowing dynamization and completion of fracture healing), two patients with postoperative deformity that required a derotation procedure, and two drill bits that broke intraoperatively and were retained. There were no major complications at the hip, no migration or failure of proximal locking screws, and no screws required removal.

CONCLUSIONS

Using a reconstruction nail and cephalomedullary proximal locking screws for antegrade femoral nailing of femoral shaft fractures was not associated with major complications in this series. This modification of standard femoral nailing offers potential advantages, including fixation of any "missed" associated femoral neck fractures and prevention of late hip fractures that might occur above the nail.

Bone mineral density reference range in Estonia: a comparison with the standard database (NHANES III)

Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) is accepted as a standard for diagnosing osteoporosis. Several databases are available for T-score calculation worldwide. Our aim was to compare hip bone mineral density (BMD) in young Estonian adults with the mean BMD in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) femur database and to compare the performance of these 2 databases. A population sample of 304 subjects was analyzed with a Lunar DPX-IQ DXA machine (GE Lunar Co., Madison, WI). Seventy-seven healthy young individuals were selected based on their age (25-39 yr). Their femur neck, trochanter, and total hip mean standardized BMD was compared with the corresponding data from the NHANES III database. Diagnostic agreement was assessed in a population sample of adults and in a clinical convenience sample from the densitometry unit. The BMD in the proximal femur in healthy young Estonian adults did not differ from the mean BMD in the NHANES subjects (p > 0.05). Differences in diagnosing osteoporosis and osteopenia are present if the Estonian reference database is used instead of the US standard database. Prospective studies with fracture data for assessing the predictive capability of these reference databases and the additional benefit of adding the FRAX (World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Metabolic Bone Diseases, University of Sheffield, UK) tool to fracture prediction and osteoporosis diagnosis are needed in Estonia.

Pilot study on the use of zoledronic acid to prevent bone loss in allo-SCT recipients

Bone loss is recognized as worsening the quality of life in long-term survivors of Allo-SCT. This study evaluated the risk factors associated with bone loss and the role of zoledronic acid in preventing bone loss in allogeneic recipients. Fifty-three patients who underwent HLA-matched Allo-SCT were evaluated for their bone mineral density (BMD) in the lumbar spine and femoral neck at regular intervals. Zoledronic acid (4 mg) was given i.v. to 18 patients (ZA patients) at 2 months after SCT and then every 3 months until 2 years. Grade 2-4 acute GVHD was associated with bone loss (odds ratio (OR)=4.90, 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.41-16.99; P=0.012) at 1 year after SCT, whereas extensive chronic GVHD and steroid use were both unfavorable prognostic factors (OR=9.00 and 7.22, 95% CI=1.52-53.40 and 1.44-36.22; P=0.016, respectively) in terms of osteopenia/osteoporosis at 2 years after transplantation. The use of zoledronic acid significantly prevented bone loss in the femoral neck as well as the spine (OR=0.18, 95% CI=0.05-0.69, P=0.012). Therefore, BMD measurements and the use of zoledronic acid are recommended in cases of GVHD or long-term steroid use after Allo-SCT to prevent bone loss and threatening skeletal events.

DXA scanning in clinical practice

Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) is recognized as the reference method to measure bone mineral density (BMD) with acceptable accuracy errors and good precision and reproducibility. The World Health Organization (WHO) has established DXA as the best densitometric technique for assessing BMD in postmenopausal women and based the definitions of osteopenia and osteoporosis on its results. DXA allows accurate diagnosis of osteoporosis, estimation of fracture risk and monitoring of patients undergoing treatment. However, when DXA studies are performed incorrectly, it can lead to major mistakes in diagnosis and therapy. This article reviews the fundamentals of positioning, scan analysis and interpretation of DXA in clinical practice.

European guidance for the diagnosis and management of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women

Guidance is provided in a European setting on the assessment and treatment of postmenopausal women with or at risk from osteoporosis.

INTRODUCTION

The European Foundation for Osteoporosis and Bone disease (subsequently the International Osteoporosis Foundation) published guidelines for the diagnosis and management of osteoporosis in 1997. This manuscript updates these in a European setting.

METHODS

The following areas are reviewed: the role of bone mineral density measurement for the diagnosis of osteoporosis and assessment of fracture risk; general and pharmacological management of osteoporosis; monitoring of treatment; assessment of fracture risk; case finding strategies; investigation of patients; health economics of treatment.

RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS

A platform is provided on which specific guidelines can be developed for national use.

Differences in site-specific fracture risk among older women with discordant results for osteoporosis at hip and spine: study of osteoporotic fractures

To examine the fracture pattern in older women whose bone mineral density (BMD) T-score criteria for osteoporosis at hip and spine disagree, hip and spine BMD were measured in Study of Osteoporotic Fractures participants using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Hip osteoporosis was defined as T-score <or=-2.5 at femoral neck or total hip, and spine osteoporosis as T-score <or=-2.5 at lumbar spine. Incident clinical fractures were self-reported and centrally adjudicated. Incident radiographic spine fractures were defined morphometrically. Compared to women with osteoporosis at neither hip nor spine, those osteoporotic only at hip had a 3.0-fold age- and weight-adjusted increased risk for hip fracture (95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.4-3.6), and smaller increases in risk of nonhip nonspine (hazard ratios [HR]=1.6), clinical spine (odds ratio [OR]=2.2), and radiographic spine fractures (OR=1.5). Women osteoporotic only at spine had a 2.8-fold increased odds of radiographic spine fracture (95% CI: 2.1-3.8), and smaller increases in risk of clinical spine (OR=1.4), nonhip nonspine (HR=1.6), and hip fractures (HR=1.2). Discordant BMD results predict different fracture patterns. DXA fracture risk estimation in these patients should be site specific. Women osteoporotic only at spine would not have been identified from hip BMD measurement alone, and may have a sufficiently high fracture risk to warrant preventive treatment.

A reference standard for the description of osteoporosis

In 1994, the World Health Organization published diagnostic criteria for osteoporosis. Since then, many new technologies have been developed for the measurement of bone mineral at multiple skeletal sites. The information provided by each assessment will describe the clinical characteristics, fracture risk and epidemiology of osteoporosis differently. Against this background, there is a need for a reference standard for describing osteoporosis. In the absence of a true gold standard, this paper proposes that the reference standard should be based on bone mineral density (BMD) measurement made at the femoral neck with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). This site has been the most extensively validated, and provides a gradient of fracture risk as high as or higher than that of many other techniques. The recommended reference range is the NHANES III reference database for femoral neck measurements in women aged 20-29 years. A similar cut-off value for femoral neck BMD that is used to define osteoporosis in women can be used for the diagnosis of osteoporosis in men - namely, a value for BMD 2.5 SD or more below the average for young adult women. The adoption of DXA as a reference standard provides a platform on which the performance characteristics of less well established and new methodologies can be compared.

Comparative effects of densitometric and absolute fracture risk classification systems on projected intervention rates in postmenopausal women

It is important to understand how the move to absolute fracture risk estimation will affect patient categorization. We retrospectively compared categorization systems in 17,053 women aged 50 yr and older from a large referral database of clinical bone mineral density (BMD) tests. Densitometric systems (femoral neck alone or minimum value from spine, total hip, femoral neck, and trochanter) were taken to indicate high risk based upon T-score -2.5 or lower. Ten-year absolute fracture risk of the hip, spine, wrist, and proximal humerus was estimated from T-score and age, and a value greater than 20% was taken to indicate high risk. Using the femoral neck only, the densitometric system assigned 16.4% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 15.8-17.0%) of the entire study population to the high-risk category, whereas the 10-yr absolute fracture risk system using age and femoral neck T-score classified 20.3% (95% CI: 19.7-20.9, p<0.0001) as high risk. When minimum T-score was used, the rates of high risk were similar using both approaches (31.4% [95% CI: 30.7-32.1] with the densitometric system vs 30.9% [95% CI: 30.2-31.6] for the 10-yr fracture risk system, p>0.2). A 10-yr absolute fracture risk cutoff of 20% produced the best overall agreement with the densitometric systems. Below age 65 yr, the 10-yr fracture risk system resulted in a lower rate of high-risk categorization than the densitometric system. The profile reversed after age 65 yr, with a greater proportion considered high risk in the 10-yr fracture risk system compared to the densitometric system.

Number of osteoporotic sites and fracture risk assessment: a cohort study from the Manitoba Bone Density Program

Site-discordance in BMD assessment is common and significantly affects patient categorization. Greater number of osteoporotic sites correlates with lower T scores at each index site. This largely explains the positive association between number of osteoporotic sites and fracture risk.

INTRODUCTION

Site-discordance in BMD is common when used to classify patients based on a cut-off T score of -2.5. It is unclear whether fracture risk assessment is improved by considering BMD information from multiple sites. Our objective was to assess the contribution of number of osteoporotic sites to overall fracture risk.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The study population was drawn from the regionally based clinical database of the Manitoba Bone Density Program that includes all clinical DXA test results for the Province of Manitoba, Canada. Analyses were limited to 16,505 women>or=50 years of age at the time of baseline DXA of the spine (L1-L4) and hip (three sites). During follow-up (3.2+/-1.5 years), longitudinal health service records showed 765 women with at least one osteoporotic fracture code (hip, forearm, spine, or humerus).

RESULTS

Of 5012 women classified as osteoporotic by at least one site (T score -2.5 or lower), almost one half (2370; 47%) were abnormal at only a single site. Among the 1856 women with an osteoporotic total hip measurement, mean total hip T scores decreased as the number of additional osteoporotic sites increased (-2.58, no other osteoporotic sites; -2.69, one other site; -2.87, two other sites; -3.17, three other sites; Spearman r=-0.44, p<0.0001). Age-adjusted fracture risk from a Cox proportional hazards model increased as the number of osteoporotic sites increased (p<0.0001), but number of osteoporotic sites was no longer an independent predictor after total hip BMD was included as a covariate (p=0.19). Covariate adjustment for other sites of BMD measurement attenuated, but did not eliminate, the effect of number of osteoporotic sites.

CONCLUSIONS

Site-discordance is common and significantly affects patient categorization when different skeletal sites are used for diagnosis. Greater number of osteoporotic sites correlates with lower T scores at each index site. This largely explains the positive association between number of osteoporotic sites and fracture risk.

What is the number of older Canadians needed to screen by measurement of bone density to detect an undiagnosed case of osteoporosis? a population-based study from CaMos

Routine bone mineral densitometry (BMD) screening has been recommended for women aged >or=65 yr (Osteoporosis Canada [OC], International Society for Clinical Densitometry [ISCD], Canadian and United States Task Forces on Preventative Healthcare, and National Osteoporosis Foundation) and for men >or=65 yr (OC) or >or=70 yr (ISCD). We estimated the number of older Canadians needed to screen (NNS) by BMD to detect an undiagnosed case of osteoporosis, using prospective, multicenter, population-based data from the Canadian Multicentre Osteoporosis Study (CaMos). We included participants aged >or=65 yr with baseline dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) BMDs at the femoral neck and lumbar spine (L1-L4). Osteoporosis was defined by a T-score <or=2.5 at either site. Patients were questioned about a prior diagnosis of osteoporosis. We studied 2699 women and 1032 men aged >or=65 yr. The percentage prevalence and 95% confidence intervals were determined. In individuals aged >or=65 yr, the prevalence of osteoporosis was 25.6% in women (95% confidence interval, 24.0%, 27.3%) and 8.9% in men (7.3%, 10.8%). In 652 men aged >or=70 yr, the prevalence of osteoporosis was 11.3% (9.1%, 14.0%). Of the participants with BMD-defined osteoporosis, 76.6% of woman aged >or=65 yr (73.2%, 79.6%; 516 of 674 women), 93.4% of men aged >or=65 yr (86.4%, 96.9%; 85 of 91), and 93.2% of men >or=70 yr (84.9%, 97.0%; 68 of 73) were not aware of it. Thus, the minimum NNS by BMD testing to detect one previously undiagnosed case of osteoporosis in Canada is: 6 women aged >or=65 yr, 13 men aged >or=65 yr, and 10 men aged >or=70 yr.

Osteoporosis update: effective prevention and treatment

Osteoporosis is a public health threat to approximately 44 million individuals in the USA, or 55% of men and women over the age of 50 years. The primary goal of osteoporosis management is to prevent fracture, the most devastating consequence. Risk factors and bone mineral density can be assessed to determine appropriate action for prevention and treatment of osteoporosis. Prevention strategies include lifestyle modification, fall prevention, and adequate intake of calcium and vitamin D. Current treatment options include antiresorptive agents and anabolic agents. Adherence and cost issues play major roles in establishing optimal therapy for individual patients. New agents in development are designed to improve osteoporosis treatment and patient adherence. This review focuses on current and future prevention and treatment options for postmenopausal osteoporosis.

Correlates of use of antifracture therapy in older women with low bone mineral density

BACKGROUND

Guidelines exist for treatment of low bone mineral density (BMD). Little is known about patient characteristics associated with use of treatment.

OBJECTIVES

To determine patient-related correlates of medication use following screening dual x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) of older adults.

DESIGN

Secondary analysis of a prospective cohort study.

SETTING

Pittsburgh, PA and Memphis, TN.

PARTICIPANTS

Community-dwelling women between the ages 70 and 79 years enrolled in the Health, Aging, and Body Composition (Health ABC) Study.

MEASUREMENTS

Risk factors for fracture and BMD of the hip were assessed at baseline. Patients and their community physicians were supplied the results of the DXA scan. Prescription and over-the-counter medication use was collected at annual exams for 2 years.

RESULTS

Of 1,584 women enrolled in Health ABC, 378 had an indication for antifracture therapy and were not receiving such treatment at baseline. By the second annual follow-up examination, prescription antiresorptive medication was reported in 49 (13.0%), whereas 65 (17.2%) received calcium and/or vitamin D supplementation. In adjusted models, the strongest predictor for use of any antifracture medicine was presence of osteoporosis [vs osteopenia, odds ratio (OR), 2.9 (1.7 to 4.7)], white race [OR, 2.6 (1.5 to 4.8)], and receipt of the flu shot [OR, 2.2 (1.3 to 3.8)]. Neither a history of falls nor prior fracture was associated with use of antifracture medications.

CONCLUSION

Even when physicians of study participants were provided with DXA scan results, 70% of older high-functioning women with an indication for therapy did not start or remain on an antifracture therapy. Substantial room for improvement exists in fracture prevention following a diagnosis of low BMD-especially among women with a history of falls, prior fractures, and among black women.