Pharmacological treatment of osteoporosis is based mainly on antiresorptive agents. However, there have been recently developed a group of drugs whose mechanism of action is the direct stimulation of bone formation: these drugs are named bone anabolic therapies. Among these compounds are fluoride, growth hormone (GH), insulin-like growth factor type I (IGF-I) and statins. Two further agents with major evidences of efficacy include strontium ranelate and parathyroid hormone (PTH) and its fragments. The present work reviews the current evidences of anabolic agents used in the treatment of osteoporosis.