Salmon calcitonin nasal spray in the prevention of corticosteroid- induced osteoporosis

The objectives were to determine the efficacy and safety of nasal salmoncalcitonin 200 IU daily in the prevention of corticosteroid- inducedosteoporosis. A minimized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial wascarried out in corticosteroid-treated patients with polymyalgia rheumatica.The setting was a tertiary care university- affiliated hospital and a totalof 31 patients were enrolled. The primary outcome measure was thepercentage change in bone mineral density of the lumbar spine in the twotreatment groups from baseline to 1 yr of follow-up. The mean +/- S.D. bonemineral density of the lumbar spine in the calcitonin-treated groupdecreased by 1.29 +/- 6.76% and in the placebo group by 4.95 +/- 3.50%after 12 months. The observed difference of 3.65 +/- 2.10% between groupsis statistically significant (P < 0.05). Nasal salmon calcitoninprevented loss of bone in the lumbar spine as measured by dual-energy X-rayabsorptiometry.