Thiazide diuretics have long been widely used as antihypertensive agents. In addition to reducing blood pressure, thiazides also control calcium homeostasis and increase bone density. We hypothesized that the use of thiazides in patients with hypertension would reduce overall fracture risk. We used the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database to find patients with a hypertension diagnosis who accepted antihypertensive treatment from 2000 to 2017. The patients were further classified into thiazide users and nonthiazide users. Multivariable Cox regression analysis and Kaplan-Meier survival analysis were performed to estimate the adjusted hazard ratios (aHRs) and cumulative probability of fractures. After 1:1 propensity score matching by sex, age, urbanization level of place of residence, income, comorbidities, and medications, there were 18,483 paired thiazide users and non-users, respectively. The incidence densities of fractures (per 1000 person-months) were 1.82 (95% CI: 1.76-1.89) and 1.99 (95% CI: 1.92-2.06) in the thiazide and nonthiazide groups, respectively. The results indicated a lower hazard ratio for fractures in thiazide users (aHR = 0.93, 95% CI: 0.88-0.98). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis revealed a significantly lower cumulative incidence of fractures in the thiazide group (log-rank test; p = 0.0012). In conclusion, our results reveal that thiazide use can reduce fracture risk. When antihypertensive agents are being considered, thiazide may be a better choice if the patient is at heightened risk of fracture.
Keywords: hypertension; risk of fracture; thiazide.