Evidence map›Paper›PMID 31317249›Full record

ArticleOsteoporosis international : a journal established as result of cooperation between the European Foundation for Osteoporosis and the National Osteoporosis Foundation of the USA2019

Time trends in oral bisphosphonate initiation in Ontario, Canada over 20 years reflect drug policy and healthcare delivery changes.

K N Hayes, J K Ban, G Athanasiadis, A M Burden, S M Cadarette

Abstract read
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In one paragraph

Article in Osteoporosis international : a journal established as result of cooperation between the European Foundation for Osteoporosis and the National Osteoporosis Foundation of the USA, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed
1.7field-weighted citation impact, top 18% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

8 citing papers in PubMed, 16 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. The rise and fall of raloxifene use for osteoporosis, 1999-2022.Osteoporosis international : a journal established as result of cooperation between the European Foundation for Osteoporosis and the National Osteoporosis Foundation of the USA · 2025
    Article
  2. Osteoporosis medication use over time in the United States and Canada.Osteoporosis international : a journal established as result of cooperation between the European Foundation for Osteoporosis and the National Osteoporosis Foundation of the USA · 2025
    Article
  3. Changing trends in bisphosphonate therapy: a twenty-five-year surveillance in a single US integrated healthcare system.Osteoporosis international : a journal established as result of cooperation between the European Foundation for Osteoporosis and the National Osteoporosis Foundation of the USA · 2025
    Article
  4. Epidemiology of Osteoporosis.Indian journal of orthopaedics · 2023
    Review
  5. Article
  6. Over half of seniors who start oral bisphosphonate therapy are exposed for 3 or more years: novel rolling window approach and patterns of use.Osteoporosis international : a journal established as result of cooperation between the European Foundation for Osteoporosis and the National Osteoporosis Foundation of the USA · 2021
    Article
  7. Review
  8. Are Nursing Home Residents With Dementia Appropriately Treated for Fracture Prevention?Journal of the American Medical Directors Association · 2021
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.

K N HayesDalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
J K BanLeslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
G AthanasiadisLeslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
A M BurdenDepartment of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences, ETH Zürich, Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zürich, Switzerland.
S M CadaretteDalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada. s.cadarette@utoronto.ca.
University of Toronto · CAUniversity Hospital of Zurich · CH

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Characteristics of patients starting oral bisphosphonate therapy changed over time, reflecting trends in osteoporosis management (e.g., new drugs to market), and general healthcare delivery (e.g., benzodiazepine use declined, statin use increased). When designing studies that examine osteoporosis drug effects, potential time-related biases must be considered.

introductionTo describe the type of oral bisphosphonate initiated and characteristics of patients starting oral bisphosphonate therapy over time.

methodsWe identified community-dwelling older adults (ages ≥ 66 years) initiating oral bisphosphonate therapy from April 1996 to March 2016 (1996 to 2015 fiscal years) using healthcare administrative data in Ontario. Patients with conditions other than osteoporosis that may impact bisphosphonate prescribing were excluded. The bisphosphonate initiated and patient characteristics were summarized by fiscal year and stratified by sex.

resultsWe identified 560,817 eligible patients (81% women). Most patients initiated cyclical etidronate from 1996 until 2005, and then weekly regimens became dominant. In 2008, risedronate became the main oral bisphosphonate (46% risedronate, 43% alendronate, 11% etidronate); with its use increasing after availability of monthly and delayed-release risedronate formulations. In 2015, 71% of patients started risedronate, 28% started alendronate, and less than 2% started etidronate. Characteristics of patients changed over time, reflecting changes in osteoporosis management and general healthcare delivery. Over time, a larger proportion of men (9% to 28%) and patients with diabetes (women 10% to 17%, men 14% to 22%) initiated therapy; benzodiazepine (women 22% to 13%, men 20% to 10%) and estrogen-based hormone replacement therapy (12% to 15% of women 1996-2002 to 3% since 2008) decreased, while statin use increased (women 15% to 39%, men 14% to 52%).

conclusionsThe characteristics of patients starting oral bisphosphonate therapy have changed over time. Consideration must be given to these time trends when designing studies that examine osteoporosis drug effects.

Indexed as

Administration, OralAgedAged, 80 and overAlendronateBone Density Conservation AgentsDiphosphonatesDrug Administration ScheduleEtidronic AcidFemaleHumansMaleOntarioOsteoporosisPharmacoepidemiologyRisedronic AcidSex FactorsAlendronateBone Density Conservation AgentsDiphosphonatesEtidronic AcidRisedronic AcidDrug therapyEpidemiologyHealth services researchOsteoporosisPharmacoepidemiologyPractice patterns

Identifiers

PMID31317249
OpenAlexW2958670404

What OpenQuestion holds

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Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.