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| |  Fosamax Decreases Disability In Osteoporosis MONTREAL, QC -- February 10, 2000 -- According to findings published in the January issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine, postmenopausal women with osteoporosis and existing vertebral (spinal) fractures who were treated with Fosamax® (alendronate sodium) for three years reported 63 percent fewer days of disability requiring bed-rest for back pain related to those fractures than do women who received a placebo. Approximately 1,000 women with clinically recognized vertebral fractures receiving alendronate sodium reported an average of 3.2 fewer days of bed rest and 11.4 fewer days of limited activity because of back pain during follow-up than those receiving placebo (approximately 1,000 women). "These results are a clear demonstration of both the substantial adverse impact of new spinal fractures in women with osteoporosis, and of the benefits of the fracture reduction efficacy of Fosamax '' said Dr. Jacques Courville, Vice-President, Medical Research for Merck Frosst Canada & Co. "The study helps clarify what the outcome of new vertebral fractures actually is and reveals how it can directly affect a patient's daily activity and quality of life,'' he added. The analysis looked at data from the Vertebral Fracture Study of the landmark Fracture Intervention Trial (FIT), which included 2,027 postmenopausal women with at least one vertebral fracture upon entry into the study. The women were randomized to receive Fosamax or placebo during three years of continued treatment and follow-up. The new study carefully documents, through a series of extensive interviews conducted every three months, how much back pain related to fractures occurred that resulted in days of bed rest and limited activity. Among women who had at least one new fracture by the end of the study, 90 percent reported at least seven days of moderate to severe back pain related to fractures, and nearly 30 percent reported at least seven or more days of bed rest because of back pain related to fractures. Back problems were also extremely common among women who did not have a new fracture during the study. Even so, the follow-up analysis confirmed that women with new clinical spine fractures have a significant increase in back pain that is severe enough to limit activities or require bed rest, compared to the women who did not have a new fracture. Fosamax has been shown in worldwide clinical trials to reduce substantially the risk of new symptomatic vertebral fractures - by as much as 55 percent - and, as these new data show, clearly reduces the burden of extended bed rest and functional disability caused by back pain related to fractures. Findings from the complete Fracture Intervention Trial, involving more than 6,400 women, showed that treatment with Fosamax is consistently effective in reducing the risk of osteoporosis-related fractures at all clinically important sites, including spine and hip. In addition, Fosamax has been shown to reduce clinical (painful) spinal fractures by 59 percent as early as one year after the start of treatment, and hip fractures by 63 percent in only 18 months. The physical and emotional costs can be great. Multiple fractures may force women to give up walking and other activities and can hasten frailty and subsequent decline. In fact, more women die each year as a result of osteoporotic fractures and related complications than from breast and ovarian cancer combined. The financial cost of treating osteoporosis and the fractures it causes is estimated at $1.3 billion each year in Canada; long term, hospital and chronic care account for the majority of these costs. Without effective action on osteoporosis prevention and treatment strategies, the Osteoporosis Society of Canada estimates that over the next 25 years Canada will spend at least $32.5 billion treating osteoporotic fractures. There are 1.4 million Canadians who suffer from osteoporosis - one in four women over the age of 50 has osteoporosis and one in eight men over 50 also have the disease. However, the disease can strike at any age. Fosamax , available in tablet form, is one of Canada's most widely prescribed treatments for osteoporosis and belongs to a class of medicines known as bisphosphonates, which inhibit bone resorption and increase bone mass. Results of studies show that Fosamax is consistently efficacious for the treatment of osteoporosis and the prevention of fractures and is generally well-tolerated. To date, more than three million women worldwide have been treated with Fosamax . Related links: Fosamax.
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