Skip to main content

Advertisement

Log in

Risk of Newly Diagnosed Type 2 Diabetes Is Reduced in Users of Alendronate

  • Original Research
  • Published:
Calcified Tissue International Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

To study the risk of developing type 1 (T1D) or type 2 (T2D) diabetes among users of drugs against osteoporosis compared to nonusers. Nationwide cohort study in Denmark with all users of drugs against osteoporosis (n = 103,562) as exposed and three age- and sex-matched nondiabetic control subjects (n = 310,683) randomly selected from the background population. The main outcome variable was an incident diagnosis of diabetes after the baseline date. Among users of alendronate, etidronate, and raloxifene, no change in the risk of T1D was observed. However, the risk of developing T2D was reduced with all three drugs (alendronate: hazard ratio [HR] = 0.71, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.59–0.85, etidronate: HR = 0.77, 95% CI 0.69–0.86, raloxifene: HR = 0.46, 95% CI 0.25–0.87). For alendronate, a dose-dependent risk reduction was observed (≥1 defined daily dose (DDD) per day: HR = 0.22, 95% CI 0.12–0.41, P for trend <0.01), while this was not the case for etidronate and raloxifene. Antiresorptive drugs do not seem associated with an increased risk of diabetes, but they may perhaps provide a protective effect related to the suppression of bone turnover. However, further studies are needed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Lee NK, Sowa H, Hinoi E, Ferron M, Ahn JD, Confavreux C, Dacquin R, Mee PJ, McKee MD, Jung DY, Zhang Z, Kim JK, Mauvais-Jarvis F, Ducy P, Karsenty G (2007) Endocrine regulation of energy metabolism by the skeleton. Cell 130:456–469

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Ferron M, Hinoi E, Karsenty G, Ducy P (2008) Osteocalcin differentially regulates beta cell and adipocyte gene expression and affects the development of metabolic diseases in wild-type mice. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 105:5266–5270

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Confavreux CB, Levine RL, Karsenty G (2009) A paradigm of integrative physiology, the crosstalk between bone and energy metabolisms. Mol Cell Endocrinol 310:21–29

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Glajchen N, Epstein S, Ismail F, Thomas S, Fallon M, Chakrabarti S (1988) Bone mineral metabolism in experimental diabetes mellitus: osteocalcin as a measure of bone remodeling. Endocrinology 123:290–295

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Adami S, Passeri M, Ortolani S, Broggini M, Carratelli L, Caruso I, Gandolini G, Gnessi L, Laurenzi M, Lombardi A, Norbiato G, Pryor-Tillotson S, Reda C, Romanini L, Subrizi D, Wei L, Yates AJ (1995) Effects of oral alendronate and intranasal salmon calcitonin on bone mass and biochemical markers of bone turnover in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis. Bone 17:383–390

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Meunier PJ, Confavreux E, Tupinon I, Hardouin C, Delmas PD, Balena R (1997) Prevention of early postmenopausal bone loss with cyclical etidronate therapy (a double-blind, placebo-controlled study and 1-year follow-up). J Clin Endocrinol Metab 82:2784–2791

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Bjarnason NH, Sarkar S, Duong T, Mitlak B, Delmas PD, Christiansen C (2001) Six and twelve month changes in bone turnover are related to reduction in vertebral fracture risk during 3 years of raloxifene treatment in postmenopausal osteoporosis. Osteoporos Int 12:922–930

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Gulhan I, Bilgili S, Gunaydin R, Gulhan S, Posaci C (2008) The effect of strontium ranelate on serum insulin like growth factor-1 and leptin levels in osteoporotic post-menopausal women: a prospective study. Arch Gynecol Obstet 278:437–441

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Kostenuik PJ, Smith SY, Jolette J, Schroeder J, Pyrah I, Ominsky MS (2011) Decreased bone remodeling and porosity are associated with improved bone strength in ovariectomized cynomolgus monkeys treated with denosumab, a fully human RANKL antibody. Bone 49:151–161

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Maugeri D, Panebianco P, Rosso D, Calanna A, Speciale S, Santangelo A, Rizza I, Motta M, Lentini A, Malaguarnera M (2002) Alendronate reduces the daily consumption of insulin (DCI) in patients with senile type I diabetes and osteoporosis. Arch Gerontol Geriatr 34:117–122

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Kristensen J, Sandbaek A, Lassen J, Bro F, Lauritzen T (2001) Use and validation of public data files for identification of the diabetic population in a Danish county. Dan Med Bull 48:33–37

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Andersen T, Madsen M, Jørgensen J, Mellemkjær L, Olsen J (1999) The Danish National Hospital Register. Dan Med Bull 46:263–268

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Mosbech J, Jørgensen J, Madsen M, Rostgaard K, Thornberg K, Poulsen T (1995) The Danish National Patient Register: evaluation of data quality. Ugeskr Laeger 157:3741–3745

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Lévesque LE, Hanley JA, Kezouh A, Suissa S (2010) Problem of immortal time bias in cohort studies: example using statins for preventing progression of diabetes. BMJ 340:b5087

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Fleisch H (ed) (1995) Bisphosphonates in bone disease: from the laboratory to the patient. Taylor & Francis, London

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The obtainment of data was supported by an unrestricted grant from the Dandy Foundation and Servier Denmark. The sponsors had no role in the preparation of the article.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Peter Vestergaard.

Additional information

The authors have stated that they have no conflict of interest.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Vestergaard, P. Risk of Newly Diagnosed Type 2 Diabetes Is Reduced in Users of Alendronate. Calcif Tissue Int 89, 265–270 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00223-011-9515-z

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00223-011-9515-z

Keywords

Navigation