We investigated which of the three FRAX fracture risk assessment tool models is most applicable to Korean women. For 306 postmenopausal women (mean age, 77 yr) with a hip fracture, fracture probabilities were calculated using FRAX models from Japan, Turkey and China. Data on bone mineral density (BMD) at the femoral neck were available for 103 patients. Significant differences existed among the models, independent of the inclusion of BMD in the calculation of fracture probabilities. The probabilities of both major osteoporotic fractures and hip fractures were significantly higher in the Japanese model than in the Turkish or Chinese models. In all of the models, the probabilities of a major osteoporotic fracture, but not of a hip fracture, decreased significantly if calculated without BMD values. By applying the Japanese model, the ten-year probabilities for major osteoporotic and hip fractures increased significantly with age. Our results suggest that the Japanese FRAX model might be the most appropriate for Korean women.
Keywords: FRAX; Fractures, Bone; Korea; Osteoporosis.