Once-a-year Drug Reduces Osteoporosis Fractures

A new study reported that a treatment for osteoporosis delivered once a year is as effective as current monthly or weekly osteoporosis regimens at reducing the incidence of bone fractures.

Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF; USA) conducted a three-year international study of 7,736 postmenopausal women with osteoporosis. The study evaluated the potential of using a once-yearly infusion of 5-mg of zoledronic acid to decrease the risk of vertebral and hip fractures in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis.

Results of the study showed that treatment with zoledronic acid was very effective in reducing the incidence of all types of fractures in women with postmenopausal osteoporosis. This included a 70% reduction in the risk of spinal fractures and a 40% reduction in the risk of hip fractures. The effect was sustained over three years. The study did observe a small increase in the incidence of atrial fibrillation (AF) in patients who received zoledronic acid. The study was reported in the May 3, 2007, issue of the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM).

"For the first time, women could have the option of being treated once a year for osteoporosis, instead of having to remember to take a weekly pill,” said lead author Dennis Black, Ph.D., a professor of epidemiology and biostatistics at the UCSF School of Medicine. "Adherence to these weekly and monthly regimens is often a problem, so an annual treatment means patients are far more likely to actually receive valuable protection against potentially devastating fractures.”

Zoledronic acid is an investigational drug in the bisphosphonate drug category that is being marketeded as Reclast by Novartis (Basel, Switzerland). It is the only once-yearly bisphosphonate treatment being studied for osteoporosis and is still in the approval process by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).


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University of California San Francisco
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