The Los Angeles Times will run a longish Sunday article by Shari Roan, taking a new skeptical look at the longer term use of bisphosphonates, in marginal cases -- bisphosphonates like those in Merck's Fosamax®. Do go read it all -- but here is the money quote:
. . . .Doctors are definitely pulling back from prescribing osteoporosis medications for people who have some bone loss but do not meet the diagnostic criteria for osteoporosis, said Dr. Felicia Cosman, clinical director of the National Osteoporosis Foundation. This milder condition is sometimes referred to as osteopenia.
"It's ironic that many of these cases of femur factures were in women with mild bone loss who probably should not have been on these drugs," Cosman said. "We probably used too many bisphosphonates in too many women for too many years. But it's not that we should stop it in everyone. The therapy has to be individualized. . . ."
It is gratifying to see a nuanced look at the issues surrounding long-term Fosamax use -- do go read the entire article.
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