The Nitrate and Bone Study: Effects of Nitrates on Osteoporosis
Status:
Completed
Trial end date:
2010-07-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
Osteoporosis or "thinning of the bones" affects in 1 in 4 Canadian women and 1 in 8 Canadian
men. Moreover, while the rates of osteoporosis among Canadians are stabilizing, worldwide the
number of people afflicted with osteoporosis continues to rise. The most serious complication
of osteoporosis is a broken bone or fracture. Fractures due to osteoporosis can result in
long hospital stays, dependence on others, and premature death. While there are several
medications that prevent osteoporosis they all have side effects. For example, postmenopausal
women who take hormone replacement therapy (HRT) are at increased risk of breast cancer and
heart disease. In addition, drugs to prevent osteoporosis are expensive and not available
worldwide. Therefore, it is essential that researchers continue to identify and test new
medications for the prevention of osteoporosis.
The purpose of the research is to determine if nitrates, a group of drugs that are widely
available, inexpensive, and commonly used to treat chest pain or angina, can prevent
osteoporosis in women. If the researchers find that nitrates prevent osteoporosis, a widely
available, inexpensive treatment for osteoporosis prevention that does not have any long term
side effects would have been identified. This will improve the health of patients with
osteoporosis worldwide.