Agents shown to be effective in the prevention/reduction of postmenopausal bone loss
| Grade of evidence | |
|---|---|
| HRT, hormone replacement therapy; *data inconsistent. | |
| Grade A, meta-analysis or randomised controlled trial or at least one randomised controlled trial. | |
| Grade B, from at least one well designed controlled study without randomisation, from at least one other well designed quasi-experimental study, or from well designed non-experimental descriptive studies, for example, comparative studies, correlation studies, case controlled studies. | |
| Grade C, from expert committee reports/opinions/or clinical experience of authorities. | |
| The table comes from the Royal College of Physician/Bone and Tooth Society updated guidelines on the “Management of osteoporosis”. | |
| Alendronate | A |
| Calcitonin | A* |
| Calcitriol | A* |
| Calcium | A |
| Cessation of smoking | B |
| Cyclical etidronate | A |
| HRT | A |
| Physical exercise | A |
| Raloxifene | A |
| Reduced alcohol consumption | C |
| Risedronate | A |
| Tibolone | A |
| Vitamin D and calcium | A |