Observational studyJournal of cachexia, sarcopenia and muscle2026
Denosumab Versus Zoledronic Acid for Muscle Strength and Physical Performance in Postmenopausal Osteoporosis: A 3-Year Prospective Study.
Observational study in Journal of cachexia, sarcopenia and muscle, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundOsteoporosis and sarcopenia frequently coexist in older adults, yet whether denosumab provides muscle-related benefits beyond bone remains uncertain. We compared denosumab and zoledronic acid across functional, imaging, biologic and study-defined sarcopenia outcomes based on an Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia (AWGS) 2025-informed framework and examined whether early osteoprotegerin (OPG)/soluble receptor activator of nuclear factor-kappa B ligand (sRANKL) responses tracked with later benefit.
methodsThis prospective observational cohort study included 186 postmenopausal women with osteoporosis and prescreened sarcopenia risk (82 denosumab, 104 zoledronic acid). Assessments at baseline and 12, 24 and 36 months included grip strength, gait speed, 5-times chair stand, lumbar spine and femoral neck bone mineral density (BMD), dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA)-derived appendicular skeletal muscle mass index (ASMI), computed tomography (CT)-derived T12-L4 skeletal muscle volume index (SMVI), skeletal muscle density (SMD), intermuscular fat volume index (IMFI), visceral fat volume index (VFI) and OPG/sRANKL-centred biologic markers. Continuous outcomes were analysed using linear mixed-effects models, categorical outcomes with Fisher exact tests and responder and mediation analyses.
resultsDenosumab showed greater functional improvement than zoledronic acid. At 12 months, grip strength increased by 1.45 ± 0.51 versus 0.66 ± 0.34 kg, gait speed by 0.041 ± 0.013 versus 0.017 ± 0.011 m/s and 5-times chair stand time by -0.82 ± 0.27 versus -0.32 ± 0.18 s (all p < 0.001). At 36 months, changes were 2.52 ± 0.63 versus 0.99 ± 0.45 kg, 0.070 ± 0.017 versus 0.027 ± 0.012 m/s and -1.47 s (-1.63, -1.34) versus -0.63 s (-0.82, -0.50) (all p < 0.001). ASMI did not differ at 12 months (p = 0.119) but favoured denosumab at 24 and 36 months (both p < 0.001; 36-month change, 0.192 ± 0.059 vs. 0.089 ± 0.050 kg/m
conclusionsCompared with zoledronic acid, denosumab was associated with stronger early OPG/sRANKL activation, earlier functional improvement, more favourable CT-defined remodelling, later DXA-derived muscle-mass gain and lower study-defined sarcopenia burden based on an AWGS 2025-informed framework over 3 years. These findings support validation of RANKL inhibition in osteosarcopenic phenotypes.
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.