RESUMO
OBJECTIVES: To find how suitable a semFYC guide is for the indication of bone densitometry in menopausal women; and how appropriate their Osteoporosis treatment is. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study.Setting. Girona-3 Health District. PARTICIPANTS: Women between 50 and 80 allocated to the Girona-3 Health District. Suffering a grave psychiatric disorder or a terminal illness were considered criteria for exclusion. 409 out of the 420 women envisaged were included, to achieve a 5% accuracy and a 0.05% alpha error. MAIN MEASUREMENTS: Whether bone densitometry took place or otherwise, other diagnostic tests, risk factors for osteoporosis recorded and drug treatment prescribed. RESULTS: Of the 125 women with risk factors for osteoporosis, 12 (9.6%) had had a bone densitometry. 20% of all bone densitometries done showed pathology. Only in 3 cases (0.7%) of the pathological cases was any recommendation on life-style recorded. 19.8% of the women took drug treatment. In 8% this was justified. The most common treatment prescribed was calcium, on its own or linked to vitamin D. 20% of cases had a bone densitometry to monitor them after 2 years. CONCLUSIONS: The indication for bone densitometry is low and its use could be improved. In those cases in which bone densitometry is requested, a pharmacological intervention is more common than a life-style one.
