The frequency that we take brittle bone medication could have long-term consequences for our wellness, according to a study looking at the disease. There are several drugs available that aim to protect us from fractures resulting from osteoporosis, and research now indicates that the way we take the medicine could be just as important as the drugs concerned.
Helping ourselves
Organisations across the world have pointed out the difficulty of treating some ailments that depend on us taking medication regularly. In fact, the American Heart Association goes as far as saying that our failure to follow prescriptions correctly is a major problem for clinicians. This has also shown to be true for conditions like osteoporosis. When we get diagnosed with this condition, we often rely on drug therapies to enhance our wellbeing. Some tablets are designed to build bone mass so we’re less likely to suffer from fractures, which may cause severe disability and death. Unfortunately, not all of us remember to take our medication, and the World Health Organisation says up to 50 per cent of us with chronic conditions do not follow our prescriptions properly.
Weekly to monthly
A new study shows that when it comes to osteoporosis medication, women are more likely to continue taking their tablets if they are on a monthly dose and have telephone support/reminders regarding their treatment. The research gave some women monthly doses of ibandronate with telephone support and another group had a weekly prescription for alendronate. The results showed that six months into their treatment programmes, 57 per cent of the monthly group were still correctly taking their medication, while just 39 per cent of the weekly group were correctly following their prescriptions. This suggests that taking fewer doses while also getting telephone support giving tips on how to live with brittle bones motivates us to take medication properly. As the International Osteoporosis Foundation says that one in two women over 50 will experience a fracture, adapting treatments programmes could help a lot of us protect our bone health.
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