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FRIDAY, May 11, 2018 (HealthDay News) — For patients with osteopenia or osteoporosis, taking a bisphosphonate (BP) drug holiday is associated with increased risk of fracture for patients with lower femoral neck bone mineral density (BMD) or T scores, according to a recent study published in Endocrine Practice<\/i>.<\/p>\n
Brittany Bindon, M.D., from the University of Chicago, and colleagues conducted a retrospective chart review of 401 patients with osteopenia or osteoporosis who began a BP drug holiday from 2004 to 2013.<\/p>\n
The researchers found that 15.4 percent of the patients developed a fracture during follow-up. Yearly fracture incidence varied from 3.7 to 9.9 percent, peaking during years four and five at 9.9 and 9.8 percent, respectively. The fracture group had a higher age than the non-fracture group, although the difference was not significant (69.24 \u00b1 12.26 years versus 66.42 \u00b1 10.18 years; P = 0.09). At baseline, the fracture group had lower femoral neck BMD (0.75 \u00b1 0.12 g\/cm\u00b2 versus 0.79 \u00b1 0.10 g\/cm\u00b2; P = 0.03) and T scores (\u22122.13 \u00b1 0.99 versus \u22121.78 \u00b1 0.79; P = 0.01) than the non-fracture group.<\/p>\n
“Patients who begin BP drug holidays at high risk of fracture based on BMD, age, or other clinical risk factors warrant close follow-up, especially as its duration lengthens,” the authors write. “Fracture risk analysis needs to be regularly assessed during the drug holiday and treatment resumed accordingly.”<\/p>\n
One author disclosed financial ties to Amgen.<\/p>\n
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