Bone healing in children with osteogenesis imperfecta treated with bisphosphonates

The long-term effects of bisphosphonate treatment in children with osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) are unknown. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether treatment with bisphosphonates interferes with the healing of fractures in a group of children with OI. Seven subjects (6 boys), aged 11.4 +/- 5.95 years, were followed for 2.5 +/- 0.84 years after the start of treatment with intravenous pamidronate (9 mg/kg/y) and/or oral alendronate (5 or 10 mg/d). Orthopaedic surgery of 24 bones was performed after 2.33 +/- 4.14 months of treatment, with 1.6 +/- 0.84 osteotomies per bone. Ambulation was started after 26.1 +/- 32.28 days. Reoperation was required in 8% of the bones due to fracture below primary fixation. Pseudoarthrosis was seen in one fracture, an osteotomy of the proximal femur (14% of the patients, as expected in an OI population). These results suggest that treatment with bisphosphonates at the administered doses does not interfere with fracture healing. Larger and longer studies are warranted.