Fracture Prevention with Infrequent Zoledronate in Women 50 to 60 Years of Age

This 10 year, double blind, randomized, placebo controlled trial investigated the efficacy of infrequent zoledronate administration in preventing vertebral fractures among early postmenopausal women (50–60 years old) with osteopenia (T scores between 0 and −2.5). Participants received either two 5 mg zoledronate infusions (baseline and 5 years), one infusion (baseline) followed by placebo, or placebo at both time points. Results showed that zoledronate significantly reduced the risk of morphometric vertebral fractures (6.3% in the zoledronate zoledronate group vs. 11.1% in the placebo group; relative risk 0.56, 95% CI 0.34–0.92). Fragility fractures and major osteoporotic fractures were also reduced. Bone mineral density improved by 5–9 percentage points, and bone turnover markers remained suppressed. Adverse events were rare. The study demonstrates that infrequent zoledronate dosing is effective for fracture prevention in early postmenopausal women.

This 10 year, double blind, randomized, placebo controlled trial investigated the efficacy of infrequent zoledronate administration in preventing vertebral fractures among early postmenopausal women (50–60 years old) with osteopenia (T scores between 0 and −2.5). Participants received either two 5 mg zoledronate infusions (baseline and 5 years), one infusion (baseline) followed by placebo, or placebo at both time points. Results showed that zoledronate significantly reduced the risk of morphometric vertebral fractures (6.3% in the zoledronate zoledronate group vs. 11.1% in the placebo group; relative risk 0.56, 95% CI 0.34–0.92). Fragility fractures and major osteoporotic fractures were also reduced. Bone mineral density improved by 5–9 percentage points, and bone turnover markers remained suppressed. Adverse events were rare. The study demonstrates that infrequent zoledronate dosing is effective for fracture prevention in early postmenopausal women.