Anabolic skeletal therapy for osteoporosis

Antiresorptive agents for osteoporosis are a cornerstone of therapy, but anabolic drugs have recently widened our therapeutic options. By directly stimulating bone formation, anabolic agents reduce fracture incidence by improving bone qualities besides increasing bone mass. In this article, we review the role of anabolic treatment for osteoporosis. The only anabolic agent currently approved in the United States for osteoporosis, teriparatide [recombinant human parathyroid hormone(1-34)], has clearly emerged as a major approach to selected patients with osteoporosis. Teriparatide increases bone density and bone turnover, improves microarchitecture, and changes bone size. The incidence of vertebral and nonvertebral fractures is reduced. Teriparatide is approved for both postmenopausal women and men with osteoporosis who are at high risk for fracture. Other potential anabolic therapies for osteoporosis, including other forms of parathyroid hormone, strontium ranelate, growth hormone, and insulin-like growth factor-1, are also reviewed in this article.