Drugs that put older people at risk for fractures are rarely stopped, study finds

Most elderly patients who fracture a hip, shoulder, or wrist are taking at least one drug that increases their risk of fracture before their injury, and most continue to take them after hospital discharge, a US study has found.1

Fractures are common in older people: a quarter of men and half of women aged over 50 experience a fracture. Hip fractures in particular are associated with considerable morbidity and mortality, as 44% of patients are readmitted to hospital and 21% die in the first year after the fracture.

In the new study published in JAMA Internal Medicine, Jeffrey …