Combination therapy with risedronate and teriparatide in male osteoporosis

What Was Tested

The paper reports a study of Teriparatide, published as a randomized controlled trial.

The primary endpoint was percentage change in lumbar spine (LS) BMD at 18 months.

Secondary outcomes included changes in bone markers and BMD at other sites and interim time-points.

Who Took Part

The abstract describes 18 men taking part.

By PubMed's age tags, the people studied were adults, middle-aged adults, older adults and people over 80, men only.

How the Study Was Run

The design is described as randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled.

Because people in this Teriparatide study were split into groups at random, differences between the groups are less likely to reflect who happened to join each one.

Neither the men nor the staff measuring them knew who was on Teriparatide, so expectations could not easily colour the readings.

Some men received a placebo instead of Teriparatide, giving a reference point.

A time span of 18 months appears in the methods.

What Was Measured

The primary endpoint was percentage change in lumbar spine (LS) BMD at 18 months.

Secondary outcomes included changes in bone markers and BMD at other sites and interim time-points.

PubMed files the paper under topics including Bone Density, Bone Density Conservation Agents, Etidronic Acid, Femur Neck, Lumbar Vertebrae, Osteoporosis and Risedronic Acid.

What This Means in Plain Language

The paper is a randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled study of Teriparatide in 18 men over 18 months.

With fewer than 40 people, it is a small study, so it is better read as an early signal for further research than as a settled answer.

The publication is from 2013 (Endocrine), a journal based in United States.

More context: the Teriparatide compound page.