Breaking news for people with diabetes
1 October 2009
The results of this study shouldn't discourage people from taking medicines to control what is potentially a very harmful disease. 
Dr Karen Woo, associate medical director, Bupa
Taking glitazones for type 2 diabetes can double your risk of a bone fracture, according to researchers.
A study published this week in PLoS Medicine looked at the relationship between glitazones (also called thiazolidinediones) and bone fractures. It was based on 1,819 patients and used data from the UK General Practice Research Database.
The researchers focused on people over the age of 40 who had previously broken any bone and who had been prescribed glitazones by their GP. They compared the number of fractures a person had before and during treatment with glitazones.
People who took glitazones were slightly more likely to have a fracture during their treatment. This risk increased with the length of time they took the medicine. If glitazones were taken for up to a year, the risk of a fracture increased by half again. People who took it for between four and seven years were twice as likely to break a bone.
The results also showed that there was very little difference in the risk between men and women. But the researchers didn't look at whether the risk of breaking a bone returned to normal levels after stopping treatment with glitazones.
Dr Karen Woo, associate medical director of Bupa commented: "There is already some evidence to suggest an association between glitazones and heart and liver failure, and this study raises more questions about using them appropriately. If your doctor prescribes glitazones, it's important to tell him or her if you have a history of fractures, or heart or liver failure. However, your doctor will only usually recommended glitazones if other medicines or self-help measures, such as a change in diet, haven't helped to control your blood glucose level."
"Managing your diabetes is very important and any potential increase in the risk of a fracture should be balanced against the risks associated with a poorly managed blood glucose level. The results of this study shouldn't discourage people from taking medicines to control what is potentially a very harmful disease."
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Related information
- Fractures health factsheet
- Healthy eating health factsheet
- Physical activity health factsheet
- Sensible drinking health factsheet
- Stopping smoking health factsheet
- Type 2 diabetes health factsheet
Read the study
Douglas IJ, Evans SJ, Pocock S, Smeeth L, 2009 The Risk of Fractures Associated with Thiazolidinediones: A Self-controlled Case-Series Study. PLoS Med 6(9): e1000154. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1000154
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