Did Prescription Bias Affect Outcomes in a Study of the Relative Effectiveness of Osteoporosis Drugs?
Authors: Abhimanyu Beri, Saakshi Khattri
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2008)

Letters7 October 2008Did Prescription Bias Affect Outcomes in a Study of the Relative Effectiveness of Osteoporosis Drugs?Abhimanyu Beri, MD and Saakshi Khattri, MDAbhimanyu Beri, MDFrom Michigan State University, Lansing, MI 48910, and Staten Island University Hospital, Staten Island, NY 10305.Search for more papers by this author and Saakshi Khattri, MDFrom Michigan State University, Lansing, MI 48910, and Staten Island University Hospital, Staten Island, NY 10305.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-149-7-200810070-00017 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail TO THE EDITOR:We read with interest the article by Cadarette and colleagues (1). Osteoporosis and fracture risk in the elderly, especially postmenopausal women, is a growing problem. A few things came to mind while reading this article. First, the authors do not mention or control patients' dietary calcium intake and physical activity, 2 factors that are the first recommendations for prevention of osteoporosis. Second, the authors do not provide an estimate of prescription and over-the-counter calcium and vitamin D supplementation in the patients (2, 3). This may be lower in poorer patients, who might have been preferentially included. Third, ...References1. Cadarette SM, Katz JN, Brookhart MA, Stürmer T, Stedman MR, Solomon DH. Relative effectiveness of osteoporosis drugs for preventing nonvertebral fracture. Ann Intern Med. 2008;148:637-46. [PMID: 18458276] LinkGoogle Scholar2. Papadimitropoulos E, Wells G, Shea B, Gillespie W, Weaver B, Zytaruk N; et al.. Osteoporosis Methodology Group. The Osteoporosis Research Advisory Group. Meta-analyses of therapies for postmenopausal osteoporosis. VIII: Meta-analysis of the efficacy of vitamin D treatment in preventing osteoporosis in postmenopausal women. Endocr Rev. 2002;23:560-9. [PMID: 12202471] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. Hourigan SR, Nitz JC, Brauer SG, O'Neill S, Wong J, Richardson CA. Positive effects of exercise on falls and fracture risk in osteopenic women. Osteoporos Int. 2008;19:1077-86. [PMID: 18188658] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. Fosamax [product insert]. Whitehouse Station, NJ: Merck & Co.; 2008. Accessed at www.merck.com/product/usa/pi_circulars/f/fosamax/fosamax_pi.pdf on 5 August 2008. Google Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: From Michigan State University, Lansing, MI 48910, and Staten Island University Hospital, Staten Island, NY 10305.Disclosures: None disclosed. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoRelative Effectiveness of Osteoporosis Drugs for Preventing Nonvertebral Fracture Suzanne M. Cadarette , Jeffrey N. Katz , M. Alan Brookhart , Til Stürmer , Margaret R. Stedman , and Daniel H. Solomon Did Prescription Bias Affect Outcomes in a Study of the Relative Effectiveness of Osteoporosis Drugs? Suzanne M. Cadarette , Jeffrey N. Katz , and Daniel H. Solomon Metrics 7 October 2008Volume 149, Issue 7Page: 514KeywordsCalcitoninCalciumDrugsElderlyExerciseFallsOsteoporosisParkinson diseaseSwallowingVitamin D ePublished: 7 October 2008 Issue Published: 7 October 2008 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2008 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...