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Therapeutics
Continuing alendronate for an additional 5 years maintained bone mineral density in postmenopausal women

https://doi.org/10.1136/ebm.12.3.70

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    Black DM, Schwartz AV, Ensrud KE, et al. Effects of continuing or stopping alendronate after 5 years of treatment: the Fracture Intervention Trial Long-term Extension (FLEX): a randomized trial. JAMA 2006;296:2927–38.
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 Q In postmenopausal women with low bone mineral density (BMD) who had been receiving daily alendronate for a mean of 5 years, what is the effect of continuing alendronate treatment for 5 years compared with discontinuing it?

    Clinical impact ratings GP/FP/Primary care ★★★★★★☆ Endocrine ★★★★★★☆ Rheumatology ★★★★★★☆ Internal medicine ★★★★★☆☆ Surgery—orthopaedics ★★★★★☆☆

    METHODS

    Embedded ImageDesign:

    randomised placebo controlled trial (Fracture Intervention Trial [FIT] Long-term Extension [FLEX]).

    Embedded ImageAllocation:

    unclear allocation concealment.*

    Embedded ImageBlinding:

    blinded (clinicians, participants, data collectors, and outcome assessors).*

    Embedded ImageFollow up period:

    5 years.

    Embedded ImageSetting:

    10 clinical centres in the US.

    Embedded ImagePatients:

    1099 postmenopausal women (mean age 73 y, 97% white) who had had low femoral neck BMD (<0.68 g/cm2) and had been allocated to alendronate (5 mg/d for 2 y and 10 …

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    Footnotes

    • ↵* See glossary.

    • For correspondence: Dr D M Black, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA. dblack{at}psg.ucsf.edu

    • Source of funding: Merck & Co.