Background: The impact of osteopenia as a risk factor for fractures is underrecognized. Moreover, the efficacy of selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs) in postmenopausal women with osteopenia is limited. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of SERMs in postmenopausal women with osteopenia.
Methods: Thirty-two postmenopausal women with osteopenia were treated with 3 types of SERMs medication: raloxifene (group I, N=15), bazedoxifene (group II, N=8), and raloxifene with cholecalciferol (group III, N=9). Bone mineral density (BMD) was measured using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry scans before treatment to after 3 years of treatment once a year.
Results: Patients in group I showed significant increases in hip BMD, -1.93 to -1.73 and spine BMD, -1.85 to -1.67. In addition, patients in groups II and III showed significant increases in hip BMD, -1.93 to -1.69 and -2.22 to -1.86, respectively and spine BMD, -2.1 to -1.3 and -2.22 to -1.37, respectively. The BMD increased in the hip and spine by 9.7% and 10.3%, respectively in group I, 38.0% and 12.4%, respectively in group II, and 38.2% and 16.2%, respectively in group III.
Conclusions: In this study, we found that SERMs could improve spine and hip BMD. In conclusion, preemptive treatment using SERMs is necessary for postmenopausal women with osteopenia. None of the patients experienced fractures during the follow-up period.
Keywords: Postmenopause; Raloxifene hydrochloride; Selective estrogen receptor modulators; Vitamin D.