Monitoring bone density in older women is unnecessary and also potentially misleading

Monitoring bone mineral density in postmenopausal women taking bisphosphonates is unnecessary and potentially misleading, a new study has concluded. According to the study’s authors, some guidelines recommend regular monitoring of bone mineral density in postmenopausal women, but it is costly and some experts question whether it is able to show how a patient is responding to treatment. {openx:269} Against that background, researchers in Australia and the United States assessed the need for monitoring by estimating how much the effects of the biophosphonate drug alendronate differ between individuals. The researchers analysed data from the Fracture Intervention Trial (FIT), a large randomised…