A Comparison of Effectiveness and Compliance among Alendronate Pharmaceutical Products in Koreans

한국인에 있어서 알렌드로네이트 제제의 제형간 유효성 및 순응도 비교

Alendronate is a bisphosphonate that selectively inhibits osteoclast-mediated bone resorption. Dosing convenience is an important element for the enhancement of patient compliance and the effective management of osteoporosis. The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness and compliance among alendronate pharmaceutical products (oral once-weekly alendronate 70 mg, daily alendronate 10 mg, and once-weekly alendronate 70 mg with Vitamin $D_3$ 2800 IU) in terms of the change in bone mineral density (BMD), biochemical markers, and compliance estimates. A retrospective chart review was conducted in patients with osteoporosis who received alendronate 70 mg (Group 1), alendronate 10 mg (Group 2), or alendronate 70 mg with Vitamin D3 2800 IU (Group 3) at the endocrinology department of a hospital in Korea from Jan. 1, 1998 to Mar. 31, 2008. The primary endpoints were the increases in spine antero-posterior BMD T-score and femur trochanter BMD T-score, and the compliance of alendronate products. Secondary endpoints included changes in bone turnover-related biochemical markers including bone-specific alkaline phosphatase, urinary N-terminal telopeptides (NTX) and osteocalcin, and in serum vitamin $D_3$ concentration. There was no statistical difference in the BMD increase among the three alendronate products; spine BMD T-score increased by $0.49{\pm}0.52$, $0.39{\pm}0.48$ and $0.50{\pm}0.41$, and femur trochanter BMD T-score by $0.29{\pm}0.42$, $0.21{\pm}0.53$ and $0.24{\pm}0.22$ in Group 1, 2 and 3, respectively. With respect to the increases in femur trochanter BMD T-score and the decreases in NTX and osteocalcin, 70 mg once-weekly group was remarkably superior to 10 mg daily group (p < 0.05) The compliance of 70 mg once-weekly group was significantly higher than that of 10 mg daily treatment group (p < 0.001). In conclusion, all three alendronate treatment groups were equivalent in effectiveness, and the compliance of 70 mg once-weekly group was better than that of 10 mg daily treatment group.