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Monday, September 22, 2003The interim results come from a one-year study, sponsored by the National Institutes of Health, in 238 post-menopausal women. Some received only Preos, a bioengineered full-length version of human parathyroid hormone, some only Fosamax, an osteoporosis drug sold by Merck & Co., while others were treated with both drugs. Bone mineral density at the spine increased in all the treatment groups, but was highest, at a rate of 6.3 percent, in the parathyroid hormone group. The volume of spongy bone at the center of the spine also increased, but the 24 percent increase in the parathyroid hormone group was about twice that found in either of the other groups. Increased bone density at the hip was highest with Fosamax, but the volume of bone was actually higher with Preos. 'The inference is that you're building new bone on the outside,' Black said, noting that other studies suggest that it takes more than a year of hormone therapy for bones to mineralize. Notice that the end-spin is that the parathyroid hormone is more effective than Fosamax, no matter how you slice it. But in reality, it isn’t all that much more effective. For men, taking parathyroid hormone for thirty months increased the bone density at the spine by a mean of 18% compared to 8% for Fosamax. In the hip, parathyroid hormone increased the bone density by 6% compared to 4% for Fosamax. And the findings in women were even less impressive. Parathyroid hormone increased bone density in the lumbar spine after one year of use by a mean of 6%, while Fosamax increased it by 4%. In the hip, parathyroid hormone increased bone density by less than 1%, while Fosamax increased it by 2%. Fosamax itself isn’t cheap (anywhere from $80 to $150 per month), but it’s still a lot less expensive than parathyroid hormone. And even more to the point - neither of them bring about dramatic changes in bone density. The risk of fractures is still very real in their users. Which leaves one wondering if either of them are truly worth their price. posted by Sydney on 9/22/2003 10:12:00 PM 0 comments 0 Comments: |
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