ArticleAlzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association2025
Bisphosphonates and the risk of dementia in patients with osteoporosis or fragility fracture: A population-based study in Hong Kong.
Article in Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.
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.
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.
Who cites it
7 citing papers in PubMed.
- The bone-cerebrovascular axis: effects of bone aging on neurovascular dysfunction and neurodegeneration.The Journal of clinical investigation · 2026Review
- Recombinant LGR4 extracellular domain attenuates osteoclastogenesis and prevents bone metastasis via RANKL inhibition.Journal of bone oncology · 2026Article
- Epigenetic brain reprogramming rejuvenates neuro-immune circuits to reverse Alzheimer's disease pathology and systemic bone loss.Journal of neuroinflammation · 2026Article
- Plasma proteomics reveals divergent sex-specific senescence and bone biology signatures across neurodegenerative diseases.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Trends in Dementia Incidence, Prevalence, and Mortality among Older Hong Kong Chinese, 2005-2019: A Population-Based Study.Neuroepidemiology · 2026Article
- Osteoimmuno-brain axis: a bridge connecting osteoporosis and cognitive decline and its clinical significance in dementia and Alzheimer's disease.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Review
- Bisphosphonates and the risk of dementia in patients with osteoporosis or fragility fracture: A population-based study in Hong Kong.Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
Abstract
introductionEmerging evidence suggests neuroprotective effects of bisphosphonates. We aim to investigate whether nitrogen-containing bisphosphonates (NBPs) could reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease and related dementia (ADRD).
methodsWe identified patients aged 60+ with osteoporosis or fragility fracture in 2005-2020 from a healthcare database in Hong Kong. Patients receiving NBPs were 1:1 matched with untreated patients and those receiving other anti-osteoporosis medications ("non-NBPs") by time-dependent propensity score. Follow-up was conducted until December 31, 2021. Cause-specific hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated using the Cox proportional hazard model.
resultsAmong 121,492 patients (NBP = 15,654, non-NBP = 6331), we matched 10,833 pairs for NBPs-vs-untreated and 3080 pairs for NBPs-vs-non-NBPs. NBP use was associated with a lower risk of ADRD compared to untreated (HR = 0.84, 95% CI = 0.78-0.90) and non-NBP (HR = 0.76, 95% CI = 0.66-0.89). DISCUSSION: NBP use was associated with a lower risk of dementia, suggesting further studies are warranted on its potential to improve cognitive function. HIGHLIGHTS: Nitrogen-containing bisphosphonates (NBPs) are associated with a reduced risk of Alzheimer's disease and related dementia. NBPs resulted in an absolute risk reduction of 0.007, 0.018, and 0.021 at 1, 3, and 5 years, respectively. The number needed to treat (NNT) with NBPs at 1, 3, and 5 years were 133, 56, and 48. There is potential for repurposing NBPs as a therapeutic agent for Alzheimer's disease.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.