An update of the prevalence of osteoporosis, fracture risk factors, and medication use among community-dwelling older adults: results from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA)

SUMMARY: The prevalence of self-reported and DXA-confirmed osteoporosis was 7.8% (males 2.2%; females 12.7%), and 3.6% (males 1.2%; females 5.9%), respectively. We found that most community-dwelling older adults at high fracture risk are not taking osteoporosis medication, particularly males. There is a major opportunity for improved primary fracture prevention in the community. PURPOSE: To provide an up-to-date prevalence estimate of osteoporosis, fracture risk factors, fracture risk, and the proportion of older Canadians at high fracture risk who are not taking an osteoporosis medication. METHODS: We included Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA) participants: a community-dwelling cohort aged 45 to 85 years who completed the baseline (2015) comprehensive interview and had dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scans (N = 30,097). We describe the age- and sex-stratified prevalence of (1) self-reported osteoporosis; (2) DXA-confirmed osteoporosis; (3) fracture risk factors and people who are at high risk (FRAX® major osteoporotic fracture probability ≥ 20%); and (4) people who are at high fracture risk not taking osteoporosis medications. Sampling weights, as defined by the CLSA, were applied. RESULTS: The mean age of participants was 70.0 (SD 10.3). Overall, 7.8% had self-reported osteoporosis (males 2.2%; females 12.7%) while 3.6% had DXA-confirmed osteoporosis (males 1.2%; females 5.9%), and 2.8% were at high fracture risk (males 0.3%; females 5.1%). Of people who had osteoporosis and were at high risk, 77.3% were not taking an osteoporosis medication (males 92.3%; females 76.8%). CONCLUSIONS: Our study provides an up-to-date prevalence estimate of osteoporosis for community-dwelling older Canadians. We found that most community-dwelling older adults at high fracture risk are not taking an osteoporosis medication, particularly males. There is a major opportunity for improved primary fracture prevention in the community. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11657-022-01073-1.