Clinicians Don't Always Follow Guidelines for Osteoporosis

As the number of menopausal women continues to rise, osteoporosis screening and treatment assume greater importance. U.S. investigators conducted a study in women who had undergone dual x-ray absorptiometry from 2007 to 2009 to determine whether they met criteria for bone-mineral density (BMD) testing and subsequent treatment in accord with the 2006 North American Menopause Society (NAMS) guidelines. These guidelines specify that screening should not be initiated until age 65 (unless certain risk factors are present) and that treatment should be initiated only in osteoporotic women (or selected high-risk women with T scores between –2.5 and –2.0).

Among 615 evaluable women (mean age, 62; 95% non-Latina white), 41% did not meet criteria for B…