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International Osteoporosis Foundation sets best practice guidelines for secondary fractures
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A report recently published in Osteoporosis International establishes best practice guidelines for fracture liaison services worldwide as part of the International Osteoporosis Foundation’s Capture the Fracture initiative.
“Due to the increase in the proportion of seniors worldwide, we’re expecting a dramatic increase in the health-economic costs associated with osteoporotic fractures in the coming years,” Kristina Åkesson, MD, PhD, professor of orthopedics and a consultant at the Department of Orthopaedics at Malmö University Hospital, Lund University in Sweden, stated in a press release. “The implementation of effective [fracture liaison service] FLS systems are the best way for the health care community to identify and manage people at high risk of secondary fractures. Such systems will play a critical role in reducing the enormous human and health-economic costs of fractures.”
Kristina Åkesson
The 13 Capture the Fracture best practice standards are: patient identification, patient evaluation, post-fracture assessment timing, vertebral fracture, assessment guidelines, secondary causes of osteoporosis, falls prevention services, multifaceted health and lifestyle risk-factor assessment, medication initiation, medication review, communication strategy, long-term management and database standards, according to the report. These best practice standards are then scored by weight and achievement to create a total for the framework.
“Coordinator-based FLS have been shown to close the gap in secondary fracture prevention care, ensuring that fragility fracture sufferers receive appropriate assessment and intervention to reduce future fracture risk,” Cyrus Cooper, MA, DM, FRCP, FFPH, FMedSci, chair of the International Osteoporosis Foundation committee of scientific advisors, stated in the release.
Reference:
Åkesson K. Osteoporosis Int. 2013;doi:10.1007/s00198-013-2348-z.
Disclosure: The authors have no relevant financial disclosures.