Drug utilization analysis of osteoporosis medications in seven European electronic health databases
Authors' conclusion
Our results show suboptimal persistence to medications that varied across different databases and treatment switching was relatively rare.
Study context
- Population
- Adults aged ≥ 18 years with ≥ 1 year of registration, new users of osteoporosis medications, seven databases in the UK, Italy, the Netherlands, Denmark, Spain and Germany, 01 January 2018 to 31 January 2022seven European databases
- Exposure
- Bisphosphonates, denosumab, teriparatide and selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs)
- Outcome
- Drug utilization patterns: persistence and switching
- Follow-up
- 6 and 12 months
Methodological detailsdrug utilization study, multi-database (seven European electronic health databases), new users
- Drug utilization study
- Multi-database (seven European electronic health databases)
- New users
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Proportion of persistent users (range across databases) · 6 months; 12 months
| Group | 6 months | 12 months |
|---|---|---|
| Alendronate | 52-73% | 29-53% |
| Other oral bisphosphonates | 50-66% | 30-44% |
| SERMs | 40-73% | 25-59% |
| Denosumab | 50-85% | 30-63% |
| Teriparatide | 40-75% | 21-54% |
6 months
Alendronate52-73%
Other oral bisphosphonates50-66%
SERMs40-73%
Denosumab50-85%
Teriparatide40-75%
12 months
Alendronate29-53%
Other oral bisphosphonates30-44%
SERMs25-59%
Denosumab30-63%
Teriparatide21-54%
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
| Outcome | Alendronate | Teriparatide |
|---|---|---|
| Switching (range across databases) | 2.8-5.8% | 7.1-14% |
Switching (range across databases)
- Switching typically occurred in the first 6 months and decreased over time
- Alendronate users most often switched to other oral or intravenous bisphosphonates and denosumab
Original publication
Drug utilization analysis of osteoporosis medications in seven European electronic health databases. Osteoporos Int. Published 12 July 2023. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →