ABSTRACT
Osteoporosis is widely prevalent in India and osteoporotic fractures are a common cause of morbidity and mortality. A survey was conducted to obtain information regarding views of Indian orthopaedic surgeons about criteria used for diagnosing and treating osteoporosis, and treatment duration with bisphosphonates, the recommended drugs for osteoporosis. The survey was carried out at Indian Orthopaedic Association Conference (IOACON) in November 2006 using two types of forms--form 'A' contained information pertaining to clinical history and assessed the duration of patients' compliance with bisphosphonates, while form 'B' contained information on investigations as well for the same cases and assessed the duration of treatment effect with risedronate and alendronate. Of 1,054 orthopaedic surgeons who participated, 591 answered form 'A' and 463 answered form 'B'. Results showed that 78% of orthopaedic surgeons diagnose osteoporosis based on clinical history and majority of them were willing to prescribe bisphosphonates. However, they believed that two-thirds of all patients took drugs for 6 months or less. Of 409 surgeons who answered the question on risedronate, 55% believed its treatment effect was seen within 3 months, as compared to only 35% of 350 surgeons who answered for alendronate. The survey results highlight the need to better manage certain aspects of osteoporosis as regards diagnosis, drug choice and treatment duration in India.