regional medical center: Atypical Femur Fracture Risk Linked To Bisphosphonate Usage

Atypical Femur Fracture Risk Linked To Bisphosphonate Usage

Editor's Choice
Academic Journal
Main Category: Bones / Orthopedics
Article Date: 25 May 2012 - 0:00 PDT

email to a friend Â

printer friendly Â

opinions Â <!--

rate article

Patient / Public: not yet rated

Healthcare Prof: not yet rated

In a study published Online First by JAMA's Archives of Internal Medicine, Raphael P. H. Meier, M.D., and his team from Geneva's University Hospitals and Faculty of Medicine in Switzerland declare: "Current evidence suggests that there is an association between bisphosphonate therapy and atypical femoral fractures, but the extent of this risk remains unclear."

The researchers analyzed 477 patients' data, aged 50 years and older, who were hospitalized with a subtrochanteric or femoral shaft fracture at a single university medical center together with a random sample of 200 healthy individuals without any fractures. The types of factures sustained amongst the patients were identified as 39 patients with an atypical fracture, of which 32 patients or 82.1% were treated with bisphosphonates, whilst of the remaining 438 patients with a classic fracture, 28 patients or 6.4% received bisphosphonates. In comparison with those without fractures, bisphosphonates was linked to reduction risk of 47% in those that had sustained a classic fracture.

After categorizing the patients depending on the lengths of their treatment, as compared with no treatment, the treatment time for an atypical fracture compared with a classic fracture was 35.1 for a treatment period of less than 2 years, 46.9 for treatment durations of between 2 to 5 years and 117.1 for treatment periods ranging between 5 to 9 years and 175.7 for periods lasting longer than 9 years.

In a final statement the researchers write:

"In conclusion, we have demonstrated that the association between bisphosphonate treatment and the occurrence of atypical fractures of the femur is highly likely and that the duration of such treatment significantly correlates with augmented risk. However, the incidence rate was very low, and the absolute benefit to risk ratio of bisphosphonate use remains positive."

Invited Commentary: Atypical Femoral Fractures Risk and Bisphosphonates

Douglas C. Bauer, M.D., of San Francisco's University of California states in an invited comment:

"The case control study by Meier et al in this issue of the Archives adds further data suggesting that the association between bisphosphonate use and atypical femur fractures is causal," concluding that, "atypical femur fractures are uncommon but do appear to be more frequent among individuals who are being treated with oral and intravenous bisphosphonates, and longer duration of use further increases the risk. Additional studies of atypical fractures are needed to clarify the mechanism and other key risk factors as well as to confirm that discontinuation of treatment after long-term use substantially lowers the risk."

Written By Petra Rattue
Copyright: Medical News Today
Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

Additional

References

Citations

"Increasing Occurrence of Atypical Femoral Fractures Associated With Bisphosphonate Use"
Raphael P. H. Meier, MD; Thomas V. Perneger, MD; Richard Stern, MD; RenÃ© Rizzoli, MD and Robin E. Peter, MD

Archives of Internal Medicine , May 2012, doi: 10.1001/archinternmed.2012.1796

"Atypical Femoral Fracture Risk in Patients Treated With Bisphosphonates Comment on 'Increasing Occurrence of Atypical Femoral Fractures Associated With Bisphosphonate Use' "

Archives Of Internal Medicine , May 2012, doi: 10.1001/archinternmed.2012.1827 Arch Intern Med. Published online May 21, 2012. doi:10.1001/archinternmed.2012.1827. Available pre-embargo to the media at http://media.jamanetwork.com.)

Please use one of the following formats to cite this article in your essay, paper or report:

MLA

APA

Please note: If no author information is provided, the source is cited instead.

Add Your Opinion On This Article

'Atypical Femur Fracture Risk Linked To Bisphosphonate Usage'

Please note that we publish your name, but we do not publish your email address. It is only used to let you know when your message is published. We do not use it for any other purpose. Please see our privacy policy for more information.

If you write about specific medications or operations, please do not name health care professionals by name.

All opinions are moderated before being included (to stop spam)

Contact Our News Editors

For any corrections of factual information, or to contact the editors please use our feedback form.

Please send any medical news or health news press releases to:

Note: Any medical information published on this website is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a health care professional. For more information, please read our terms and conditions.

regional medical center

Jumat, 25 Mei 2012

Atypical Femur Fracture Risk Linked To Bisphosphonate Usage

Invited Commentary: Atypical Femoral Fractures Risk and Bisphosphonates

Add Your Opinion On This Article

Tidak ada komentar:

Posting Komentar