American Society for Bone and Mineral Research, Sept. 12-16, 2008

30th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research

The 30th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research took place Sept. 12 to 16 in Montreal, Canada, attracted more than 5,000 attendees from over 60 countries, and featured 300 oral presentations and 1,500 poster presentations. Highlights included the release of phase III and IIB trials showing the efficacy of two new biologic osteoporosis drugs that target osteoclasts: denosumab and odanacatib.

Steven R. Cummings, M.D., of the California Pacific Medical Centers Research Institute and the University of California San Francisco, and colleagues from the FREEDOM (Fracture Reduction Evaluation of Denosumab in Osteoporosis every 6 Months) trial randomly assigned 7,868 women aged 60 to 90 to receive either 60 milligrams of subcutaneously injected denosumab every six months or placebo for three years. They found that denosumab was associated with significantly lower rates of new vertebral fractures, hip fractures and non-vertebral fractures.

In a related phase III study, researchers compared outcomes in postmenopausal women who transitioned from once-weekly oral alendronate (Fosamax) to twice-monthly injections of denosumab with patients who continued taking alendronate. They found that the transition patients had greater bone mineral density improvements in the lumbar spine and hip.

"Data from these trials highlight the potential for a new treatment option for the millions of postmenopausal women worldwide with osteoporosis," Roger M. Perlmutter, M.D., Ph.D., executive vice president of Research and Development at Amgen, said in a statement.

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Michael McClung, M.D., of the Oregon Osteoporosis Center in Portland, and colleagues conducted a phase IIB study in which they randomly assigned 399 postmenopausal women to receive either once-weekly treatment with one of four oral doses of odanacatib or placebo for 24 months. They found that the 50-milligram dose of odanacatib was associated with bone mineral density increases at the lumbar spine, total hip, and the femoral neck while placebo was associated with bone mineral density decreases at all three sites.

"These results show that two years of odanacatib treatment was generally well-tolerated and increased lumbar spine and total hip bone mineral density in postmenopausal women with low bone mineral density," McClung and colleagues conclude.

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Elizabeth Barrett-Connor, M.D., of the University of California San Diego, and colleagues analyzed data from 91,561 women aged 50 to 64 who answered a baseline questionnaire and received a bone mineral density assessment. They found that a simple three-item tree-based algorithm could accurately assess the six-year risk of osteoporotic fracture.

Compared to subjects who reported excellent-to-good health, Barrett-Connor and colleagues found that the risk of fracture was elevated in patients who reported a prior history of fracture, those with a bone mineral density T-score of 1.1 or less and no prior history of fracture, and those who reported fair-to-poor health (relative risks 4.9, 2.2 and 1.8, respectively).

"Results were almost as good without a peripheral bone mineral density measurement," Barrett-Connor and colleagues conclude. "Any postmenopausal woman with a history of fracture and who reports fair or poor health should be evaluated for appropriate fracture prevention management."

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ASBMR: Fracture Affects Older Women's Health Status

MONDAY, Sept. 15 (HealthDay News) -- Among older women, self-reported health status is significantly lower among those who have sustained one or more fragility fractures since age 45, according to research presented at the annual meeting of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research held Sept. 12 to 16 in Montreal, Canada.

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ASBMR: At-Risk Women Downplay Odds of Fracture

MONDAY, Sept. 15 (HealthDay News) -- Most older women with one or more risk factors for osteoporotic fracture mistakenly believe they have a similar or even lower risk compared to other women their age, according to research presented at the annual meeting of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research held Sept. 12 to 16 in Montreal, Canada.

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