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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2021 Mar 1.
Published in final edited form as: J Bone Miner Res. 2019 Dec 10;35(3):478–487. doi: 10.1002/jbmr.3915

Table 3.

Time-Varying Factors Associated With Prolonged Discontinuation of Alendronate

N = 20,455
Hazard
period
n (%)
Control periods
1 and 2
n (%)
Adjusted OR
(Wald 95% CI)
Factors associated with bone health
 Case qualifying fragility fracture 441 (2.2) 400 (1.0) 1.2 (1.0, 1.4)
 Osteopenia diagnosis 1499 (7.3) 1794 (4.4) 1.8 (1.7, 2.0)
 Osteoporosis diagnosis 5510 (26.9) 7820 (19.1) 1.4 (1.3, 1.5)
 Fall 744 (3.6) 986 (2.5) 1.0 (0.9, 1.1)
 DXA scan 2884 (14.1) 3219 (7.9) 1.7 (1.6, 1.7)
 Bone turnover markers 3 (0.0) 1 (0.0) 6.6 (0.7, 64.2)
 At least 1 visit with an osteoporosis specialist (rheumatologist or endocrinologist) 1328 (6.5) 2343 (5.7) 1.2 (1.0, 1.3)
Factors associated with overall health status
 No. of unique days with at least 1 physician visit 6512 (31.8) 15,079 (36.9) ref
0–1
 2–4 6605 (32.3) 13,694 (33.5) 1.0 (1.0, 1.1)
 5 or more 7338 (35.9) 12,137 (29.7) 1.3 (1.2, 1.3)
 Charlson comorbidity index 15,726 (76.9) 32,382 (79.2) ref
0
 1 to 2 3507 (17.1) 6690 (16.4) 1.0 (0.9, 1.1)
 3+ 1222 (6.0) 1838 (4.5) 1.1 (1.0, 1.3)
 At least 1 ER visit 3694 (18.1) 4706 (11.5) 1.2 (1.1, 1.2)
 At least 1 day hospitalized as inpatient 2538 (12.4) 2358 (5.8) 1.5 (1.3, 1.6)
 Hospitalized stroke, MI, CHD, CVD event 97 (0.5) 130 (0.3) 0.7 (0.5, 1.0)
 Any skilled nursing facility care 1163 (5.7) 791 (2.0) 1.9 (1.7, 2.2)
 Alzheimer’s or other dementia 2176 (10.6) 2858 (7.0) 2.0 (1.8, 2.3)
 Depression or anxiety 2251 (11.0) 3309 (8.1) 1.1 (1.0, 1.2)
Medications
 Alpha blocker 1350 (6.6) 2456 (6.1) 1.6 (1.3, 1.9)
 Anticholinergic antihistamine 284 (1.4) 538 (1.3) 0.9 (0.8, 1.1)
 Antipsychotic 189 (0.9) 355 (0.9) 1.4 (0.8, 2.4)
 Barbiturate 34 (0.2) 38 (0.1) 23.6 (3.1, 181.8)
 Benzodiazepine 1168 (5.7) 1345 (3.3) 3.1 (2.7, 3.6)
 Beta blocker 7871 (38.5) 15,238 (37.3) 1.3 (1.2, 1.4)
 Muscle relaxant 712 (3.5) 1379 (3.4) 0.9 (0.8, 1.1)
 Nonbenzodiazepine, benzodiazepine agonist 902 (4.4) 1801 (4.4) 0.9 (0.8, 1.1)
 Opioid 4852 (23.7) 8823 (21.6) 1.1 (1.0, 1.1)
 Oral glucocorticoids 1597 (7.8) 2949 (7.3) 1.2 (1.1, 1.3)
 Proton pump inhibitor 4900 (24.0) 8684 (21.3) 1.8 (1.6, 1.9)
 Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor 3560 (17.4) 6613 (16.2) 1.5 (1.3, 1.7)
 Tricyclic antidepressant 496 (2.4) 1055 (2.6) 0.7 (0.6, 1.0)
 Vasodilator 992 (4.9) 1766 (4.3) 1.5 (1.3, 1.9)

OR = odds ratio; CI = confidence interval; DXA = dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry; ER = emergency room; MI = myocardial infarction; CHD = chronic heart disease; CVD = cardiovascular disease.

Associations significant at p value <0.01 are in bold.