NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – The daily use of strontium ranelate can reduce the risk of vertebral fractures in postmenopausal women, between 50 and 65 years of age, who have severe osteoporosis, according to a brief report in the December issue of the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases.

The results stem from an analysis of data from 353 women enrolled in the Spinal Osteoporosis Therapeutic Intervention (SOTI), a placebo-controlled trial looking at the anti-fracture efficacy of a 2-g daily dose of strontium ranelate. Roughly 80% of the women in each group had a vertebral fracture at baseline, which greatly increases the odds of additional fractures.

During 4 years of follow-up, women treated with strontium ranelate were 35% less likely to sustain a vertebral fracture than their peers given placebo (p = 0.049), lead author Dr. C. Roux, from Universite Paris-Descartes, and colleagues report. The rate of vertebral fractures in the strontium ranelate and placebo groups were 21.6% and 32.8%, respectively.

In the strontium ranelate group, bone mineral density increased by 15.8% at the lumbar spine and 7.7% at the femoral neck from baseline to 4 years. By contrast, in the placebo group, bone mineral density decreased slightly during follow-up (p < 0.001 both sites, between groups). “Our study indicates a significant efficacy of strontium ranelate in reducing the risk of subsequent vertebral fractures in young postmenopausal women with severe osteoporosis,” the authors conclude. “These data together with previous reports confirm the efficacy of this anti-osteoporotic drug at all ages.” Ann Rheum Dis 2008;67:1736-1738.