Prostate medication 'does not increase hip fracture risk'
A group of medicines for enlarged prostate, 5-alpha reductase inhibitors, does not lead to an increased risk of hip fracture, according to a new study.
Researchers from managed care organisation Kaiser Permanente Southern California studied 7,076 men, aged 45 years and older, who experienced a hip fracture between 1997 and 2006. The control group were 7,076 men who had not had a hip fracture.
The findings, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, revealed that of the patients in the study, 2,547 (36 per cent of the men with hip fracture) and 2,488 (35 per cent of the men without hip fracture) had a prior diagnosis of enlarged prostate.
The use of alpha-blockers was slightly greater in men with hip fracture (32 per cent) compared with those without hip fracture (30 per cent).
"These data suggest that 5-alpha reductase inhibitors do not confer a negative risk for bone health and in fact may lower the risk of hip fracture," the researchers concluded.
They added: "While presumably this lower risk is related to hormonal mechanisms, further understanding of the biological mechanisms underlying this phenomenon may lead to new insights that can be exploited for preventive measures.
"The increased risk of fracture associated with recent receipt of an alpha-blocker highlights the need for careful titration of these agents." 
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