USPSTF favors osteoporosis screening to prevent fracture

(HealthDay)—The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommends screening for osteoporosis to prevent fractures for women aged ≥65 years and for postmenopausal women aged <65 years at increased risk of osteoporosis. These findings form the basis of a final recommendation statement published online June 26 in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Meera Viswanathan, Ph.D., from RTI International-University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and colleagues conducted a systematic review of the literature to update the evidence on screening and treatment to prevent osteoporotic fractures.

The researchers found that there was convincing evidence for the accuracy of bone measurement tests for detecting osteoporosis and predicting osteoporotic fractures in women and men. Adequate evidence was found that clinical risk assessment tools are moderately accurate for identifying risk of osteoporosis and osteoporotic fractures. Convincing evidence was found that drug therapies can reduce the rates of subsequent fractures in postmenopausal women. Based on these findings, the USPSTF recommends screening for women aged 65 years and older and in younger women who have been through menopause and are at increased risk (B recommendations). Insufficient evidence was found to recommend screening for osteoporosis to prevent fractures in men (I statement).

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