Table 1.
Characteristics of comparative analysis population, by each of the input variables included in QFracture, FRAX, and Garvan
| Input variables* | No (%) in study population | Major osteoporotic fracture† | Hip fracture† | QFracture | FRAX | Garvan |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 1 054 815 (100) | 81 564 (7.7) | 28 091 (2.7) | |||
| Age group (years): | ||||||
| 50-59 | 401 035 (38.0) | 15 324 (3.8) | 1994 (0.5) | V | V | V |
| 60-69 | 299 305 (28.4) | 17 634 (5.9) | 3689 (1.2) | |||
| 70-79 | 222 475 (21.1) | 25 871 (11.6) | 9465 (4.3) | |||
| 80-89 | 132 000 (12.5) | 22 735 (17.2) | 12 943 (9.8) | |||
| Sex: | ||||||
| Men | 478 825 (45.4) | 23 268 (4.9) | 8996 (1.9) | V | V | V |
| Women | 575 990 (54.6) | 58 296 (10.1) | 19 095 (3.3) | |||
| Ethnicity: | ||||||
| Black African | 12 813 (1.2) | 540 (4.2) | 135 (1.1) | V | – | – |
| White | 1 042 002 (98.8) | 81 024 (7.8) | 27 956 (2.7) | |||
| Nursing home residency: | ||||||
| No | 1 041 516 (98.7) | 80 155 (7.7) | 27 191 (2.6) | V | – | – |
| Yes | 13 299 (1.3) | 1409 (10.6) | 900 (6.8) | |||
| Body mass index category: | ||||||
| Obese | 309 128 (29.3) | 24 417 (7.9) | 6833 (2.2) | V | V | V‡ |
| Overweight | 405 416 (38.4) | 30 296 (7.5) | 10 101 (2.5) | |||
| Normal | 276 206 (26.2) | 23 190 (8.4) | 9467 (3.4) | |||
| Underweight | 9216 (0.9) | 1113 (12.1) | 601 (6.5) | |||
| Missing | 54 849 (5.2) | 2548 (4.6) | 1089 (2.0) | |||
| Smoking category: | ||||||
| Non-smoker | 681 698 (64.6) | 57 859 (8.5) | 20 033 (2.9) | V | V | – |
| Former smoker | 163 185 (15.5) | 11 427 (7.0) | 3901 (2.4) | |||
| Current smoker | 175 011 (16.6) | 10 171 (5.8) | 3130 (1.8) | |||
| Missing | 34 921 (3.3) | 2107 (6.0) | 1027 (2.9) | |||
| Alcoholism: | ||||||
| No | 1 043 558 (98.9) | 80 487 (7.7) | 27 623 (2.6) | V | V | – |
| Yes | 11 257 (1.1) | 1077 (9.6) | 468 (4.2) | |||
| Parental hip fracture: | ||||||
| No | 1 036 081 (98.2) | 80 698 (7.8) | 27 949 (2.7) | V | V | – |
| Yes | 18 734 (1.8) | 866 (4.6) | 142 (0.8) | |||
| Parental osteoporotic fracture: | ||||||
| No | 990 039 (93.9) | 79 026 (8.0) | 27 776 (2.8) | V | – | – |
| Yes | 64 776 (6.1) | 2538 (3.9) | 315 (0.5) | |||
| Major osteoporotic fracture: | ||||||
| No | 984 128 (93.3) | 60 562 (6.2) | 19 208 (2.0) | V | V | – |
| Yes | 70 687 (6.7) | 21 002 (29.7) | 8883 (12.6) | |||
| No of fractures after age 50 years: | ||||||
| 0 | 898 475 (85.2) | 50 897 (5.7) | 15 932 (1.8) | – | – | V |
| 1 | 119 329 (11.3) | 19 766 (16.6) | 7408 (6.2) | |||
| 2 | 27 171 (2.6) | 7307 (26.9) | 3111 (11.4) | |||
| ≥3 | 9840 (0.9) | 3594 (36.5) | 1640 (16.7) | |||
| History of a fall: | ||||||
| No | 990 681 (93.9) | 68 371 (6.9) | 21 406 (2.2) | V | – | – |
| Yes | 64 134 (6.1) | 13 193 (20.6) | 6685 (10.4) | |||
| No of falls in past year: | ||||||
| 0 | 1 031 443 (97.8) | 76 082 (7.4) | 25 320 (2.5) | – | – | V |
| 1 | 9746 (0.9) | 2292 (23.5) | 1214 (12.5) | |||
| 2 | 9986 (0.9) | 2272 (22.8) | 1106 (11.1) | |||
| ≥3 | 3640 (0.3) | 918 (25.2) | 451 (12.4) | |||
| Secondary osteoporosis§: | ||||||
| No | 984 123 (93.3) | 74 259 (7.5) | 25 408 (2.6) | – | V | – |
| Yes | 70 692 (6.7) | 7305 (10.3) | 2683 (3.8) | |||
| Dementia: | ||||||
| No | 1 030 739 (97.7) | 78 019 (7.6) | 25 885 (2.5) | V | – | – |
| Yes | 24 076 (2.3) | 3545 (14.7) | 2206 (9.2) | |||
| Parkinson’s disease: | ||||||
| No | 1 032 213 (97.9) | 78 322 (7.6) | 26 305 (2.5) | V | – | – |
| Yes | 22 602 (2.1) | 3242 (14.3) | 1786 (7.9) | |||
| Epilepsy: | ||||||
| No | 996 622 (94.5) | 74 672 (7.5) | 25 450 (2.6) | V | – | – |
| Yes | 58 193 (5.5) | 6892 (11.8) | 2641 (4.5) | |||
| Type 1 diabetes: | ||||||
| No | 1 053 791 (99.9) | 81 448 (7.7) | 28 046 (2.7) | V | – | – |
| Yes | 1024 (0.1) | 116 (11.3) | 45 (4.4) | |||
| Type 2 diabetes: | ||||||
| No | 765 591 (72.6) | 54 814 (7.2) | 17 451 (2.3) | V | – | – |
| Yes | 289 224 (27.4) | 26 750 (9.2) | 10 640 (3.7) | |||
| Other endocrine disorders: | ||||||
| No | 1 005 799 (95.4) | 76 155 (7.6) | 26 060 (2.6) | V | – | – |
| Yes | 49 016 (4.6) | 5409 (11.0) | 2031 (4.1) | |||
| Cancer history: | ||||||
| No | 913 510 (86.6) | 66 605 (7.3) | 22 106 (2.4) | V | – | – |
| Yes | 141 305 (13.4) | 14 959 (10.6) | 5985 (4.2) | |||
| Obstructive airways disease: | ||||||
| No | 893 999 (84.8) | 65 236 (7.3) | 22 149 (2.5) | V | – | – |
| Yes | 160 816 (15.2) | 16 328 (10.2) | 5942 (3.7) | |||
| Cardiovascular disease: | ||||||
| No | 756 649 (71.7) | 50 090 (6.6) | 14 494 (1.9) | V | – | – |
| Yes | 298 166 (28.3) | 31 474 (10.6) | 13 597 (4.6) | |||
| Malabsorption: | ||||||
| No | 1 042 869 (98.9) | 80 355 (7.7) | 27 671 (2.7) | V | – | – |
| Yes | 11 946 (1.1) | 1209 (10.1) | 420 (3.5) | |||
| Chronic liver disease: | ||||||
| No | 1 033 492 (98.0) | 79 269 (7.7) | 27 250 (2.6) | V | – | – |
| Yes | 21 323 (2.0) | 2295 (10.8) | 841 (3.9) | |||
| Chronic renal disease: | ||||||
| No | 971 965 (92.1) | 72 096 (7.4) | 23 396 (2.4) | V | – | – |
| Yes | 82 850 (7.9) | 9468 (11.4) | 4695 (5.7) | |||
| Rheumatoid arthritis: | ||||||
| No | 1 028 482 (97.5) | 78 045 (7.6) | 26 828 (2.6) | V | V | – |
| Yes | 26 333 (2.5) | 3519 (13.4) | 1263 (4.8) | |||
| Systemic lupus erythematosus: | ||||||
| No | 1 052 835 (99.8) | 81 296 (7.7) | 28 003 (2.7) | V | – | – |
| Yes | 1980 (0.2) | 268 (13.5) | 88 (4.4) | |||
| Drug purchases¶: | ||||||
| Glucocorticoids: | ||||||
| No | 1 027 475 (97.4) | 77 593 (7.6) | 26 745 (2.6) | V | V | – |
| Yes | 27 340 (2.6) | 3971 (14.5) | 1346 (4.9) | |||
| Antidepressants: | ||||||
| No | 951 080 (90.2) | 67 760 (7.1) | 22 351 (2.4) | V | – | – |
| Yes | 103 735 (9.8) | 13 804 (13.3) | 5740 (5.5) | |||
| Hormone replacement therapy: | ||||||
| Yes | 8663 (0.8) | 416 (4.8) | 70 (0.8) | V | – | – |
| No | 1 046 152 (99.2) | 81 148 (7.8) | 28 021 (2.7) |
V=variables used as input information for specified tool.
*Values within each input variable are sorted by predicted fracture rate—ie, variable’s value that has lowest predicted risk (as defended by prediction tools) appears first.
†Fracture rate during follow-up period (2010-14), within population of each subgroup.
‡Garvan uses a weight instead of body mass index.
§Defined by any of following: type 1 diabetes, osteogenesis imperfecta, hyperthyroidism, hypogonadism, premature menopause, malabsorption, and chronic liver disease.
¶Numbers were calculated using QFracture’s definition of drug purchase—at least two purchase records in six months before index date. In the case of glucocorticoid use, which is also used by FRAX, the calculation is based on a history of at least 90 days of use (extracted by number of days covered by past purchase records) and resultant numbers, which were similar to those of the QFracture variable, are not presented.