Some could stop alendronate after five years
Some women may be able to stop taking osteoporosis medicines after five years without an increase in non-vertebral fractures, a recent study suggests (JAMA 2006;296:2927).
Researchers randomised 1,099 women who had completed a mean of five years’ alendronate
treatment to continue with either active treatment or placebo for a further
five years.
Discontinuing treatment did not contribute to an increase in non-vertebral
fractures or x-ray-detected vertebral fractures over the subsequent five
years, and bone mineral density remained at or above the baseline figures
(from 10 years earlier).
However, the risk of clinically diagnosed vertebral fracture was lower
for patients who remained on treatment compared with those taking placebo
(2.4 per cent versus 5.3 per cent, relative risk 0.45, 95 per cent confidence
interval 0.24–0.85).
The authors suggest that, although after five years of treatment many
women may be able to stop taking bisphosphonates, women at high risk
of clinical vertebral fractures — such as those with existing vertebral
fracture or very low bone mineral density — may benefit from ongoing
treatment. |
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