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Drug holidays after long-term use of risedronate may not increase risk of hip fracture: study
![Drug holidays after long-term use of risedronate may not increase risk of hip fracture: study Drug holidays after long-term use of risedronate may not increase risk of hip fracture: study](https://medicaldialogues.in/h-upload/2022/01/20/750x450_168712-images-7.webp)
Drug holidays after long-term use of risedronate are associated with a small increase in the risk for hip fracture compared with drug holidays after long-term alendronate, reveals a new study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
An osteoporosis drug holiday is recommended for most patients after 3 to 5 years of therapy. Risedronate has a shorter half-life than alendronate, and thus the residual length of fracture protection may be shorter.
A study was conducted to examine the comparative risks of drug holidays after long-term (≥3 years) risedronate versus alendronate therapy.
It was a population-based, matched, cohort study. Province-wide health care administrative databases providing comprehensive coverage to Ontario residents aged 65 years or older between November 2000 and March 2020. Persons aged 66 years or older who had long-term risedronate therapy and a drug holiday were matched 1:1 on propensity score to those who had long-term alendronate therapy and a drug holiday.
The primary outcome was hip fracture within 3 years after a 120-day ascertainment period. Secondary analyses included shorter follow-up and sex-specific estimates. Cox proportional hazards models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) for fracture risk between groups.
Results:
A total of 25 077 propensity score-matched pairs were eligible (mean age, 81 years; 81% women). Hip fracture rates were higher among risedronate than alendronate drug holidays (12.4 and 10.6 events, respectively, per 1000 patient-years; HR, 1.18 [95% CI, 1.04 to 1.34]; 915 total hip fractures). The association was attenuated when any fracture was included as the outcome (HR, 1.07 [CI, 1.00 to 1.16]) and with shorter drug holidays (1 year: HR, 1.03 [CI, 0.85 to 1.24]; 2 years: HR, 1.14 [CI, 0.96 to 1.32]).
Thus, the researchers concluded that drug holidays after long-term therapy with risedronate were associated with a small increase in risk for hip fracture compared with alendronate drug holidays. Future research should examine how best to mitigate this risk.
Reference:
Comparative Fracture Risk During Osteoporosis Drug Holidays After Long-Term Risedronate Versus Alendronate Therapy: A Propensity Score–Matched Cohort Study by Kaleen N. Hayes, et al. published online in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/M21-2512
Dr. Shravani Dali has completed her BDS from Pravara institute of medical sciences, loni. Following which she extensively worked in the healthcare sector for 2+ years. She has been actively involved in writing blogs in field of health and wellness. Currently she is pursuing her Masters of public health-health administration from Tata institute of social sciences. She can be contacted at editorial@medicaldialogues.in.
Dr Kamal Kant Kohli-MBBS, DTCD- a chest specialist with more than 30 years of practice and a flair for writing clinical articles, Dr Kamal Kant Kohli joined Medical Dialogues as a Chief Editor of Medical News. Besides writing articles, as an editor, he proofreads and verifies all the medical content published on Medical Dialogues including those coming from journals, studies,medical conferences,guidelines etc. Email: editorial@medicaldialogues.in. Contact no. 011-43720751