Effectiveness of anti-osteoporotic treatment after successful parathyroidectomy for primary hyperparathyroidism: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial

Purpose After successful surgery for primary hyperparathyroidism, bone mineral density (BMD) does not improve equally in all patients. As no trial has so far aimed to influence normalization of BMD, it was the goal of this investigation to determine whether pharmacological treatment is effective in improving regain of BMD after successful parathyroidectomy in patients with preoperatively diagnosed osteoporosis or osteopenia and to evaluate when treatment may be indicated. Methods In this randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind trial, 52 patients were treated with strontium ranelate 2 g daily + 1000 mg calcium + 800 IU vitamin D (strontium group; SG) or with 1000 mg calcium + 800 IU vitamin D alone (placebo group; PG) for 1 year. The main outcome measures were BMD (lumbar spine, femoral neck, radius) and bone turnover markers. Results The baseline characteristics were similar in both groups. Absolute BMD (1.007 ± 0.197 vs. 0.897 ± 0.137 g/cm 2 ; p = 0.024) and both relative (9.94 vs. 3.94%; p