The adoption of new guidance on osteoporosis medication in 2005 may have been responsible for a 22% drop in the number of over-60s suffering a second fracture after a broken hip, an Oxford University study, published in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research, has found.
Researchers reviewed patient data from GP practices across England and Wales to see whether new guidance issued by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in January 2005 had had an effect on doctors’ practice and on patients’ health. The study was funded by the National Institute for Health Research Health Services and Delivery Research programme.