New Osteoporosis Treatment Guidelines Released

The American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR) has released guidance on the duration of bisphosphonate treatment in patients with osteoporosis.

The guidance is a result of 2 clinical trials that found that long-term treatment reduced the likelihood of fractures in women at high risk.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

RELATED CONTENT
Osteoporosis: 9 Questions Physicians Often Ask
Are Women Being Overtreated for Osteoporosis?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

In addition, the ASBMR Task Force charged with writing the guidelines searched current literature and assessed the risks of alternative drugs to collectively make recommendations.

The guidelines suggest women should be reassessed for risk after 5 years of oral treatment or 3 years of IV treatment.

Women at high risk for fractures should continue oral treatment for up to 10 years or IV treatment for up to 6 years with intermittent follow-up. Women whose risk of fractures decreased after 3 to 5 years of treatment should stop treatment for 2 to 3 years.

“The suggested approach for long-term BP use is based on limited evidence, only for vertebral fracture reduction, in mostly white postmenopausal women, and does not replace the need for clinical judgment,” the Task Force concluded.

--Amanda Balbi

Reference:

Adler RA, Fuleihan GE, Bauer DC, et al. Managing osteoporosis in patients on long-term bisphosphonate treatment: Report of a task force of the American society for bone and mineral research. J Bone & Miner Res. 2016;31(1) 16-35. doi:10.1002/jbmr.2708.