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Background and Objective: Calcium and vitamin D supplementation is recommended in patients with osteopenia and osteoporosis. One group that could benefit from this treatment is women with senile osteoporosis. Two sources of supplementary calcium are ossein-hydroxyapatite complex (OHC) and calcium carbonate, but, to date, their comparative effects on bone metabolism have not been studied in women with senile osteoporosis. The objective of this study was to compare the effects of OHC and calcium carbonate on bone metabolism in women with senile osteoporosis., Methods: This was a randomized, open-label, parallel-group, controlled, prospective study to compare the effects of OHC (treatment group) and calcium carbonate (control group) on bone metabolism. Patients were included between 2000 and 2004 and followed up for a maximum of 3 years. The study was carried out at the bone metabolism unit of two university hospitals in Barcelona, Spain. Subjects were women aged >65 years with densitometric osteoporosis of the lumbar spine or femoral neck. The treatment group received open-label OHC (Osteopor®) at a dose of two 830 mg tablets every 12 hours (712 mg elemental calcium per day). The control group received open-label calcium carbonate at a dose of 500 mg of elemental calcium every 12 hours (1000 mg elemental calcium per day). Both groups also received a vitamin D supplement (calcifediol 266 μg) at a dose of one vial orally every 15 days. Biochemical markers of bone remodelling (osteocalcin by electrochemiluminescence, tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase using colorimetry) were measured at baseline and annually for 3 years. Bone mineral density (BMD) at the lumbar spine and femoral neck was also measured., Results: One hundred and twenty women were included (55 in the OHC group and 65 in the calcium carbonate group), of whom 54 completed 3 years of follow-up. Levels of serum osteocalcin increased to a greater extent in the OHC group compared with the calcium carbonate group (by a mean ± SD of 0.84 ± 3.13 ng/mL at year 2 and 1.86 ± 2.22 ng/mL at year 3 in the OHC group compared with a mean ± SD decrease of 0.39 ± 1.39 ng/mL at year 2 and an increase of 0.31 ± 2.51 ng/mL at year 3 in the calcium carbonate group); the differences between treatment groups were statistically significant (p < 0.05) at both years. Changes over time in serum osteocalcin level were also statistically significant (p < 0.05) in the OHC group, but not in the calcium carbonate group. Changes in mean BMD at the lumbar spine and femoral neck between baseline and year 3 were -1.1% and 2.5% for OHC and -2.3% and 1.2% for calcium carbonate, respectively., Conclusion: OHC had a greater anabolic effect on bone than calcium carbonate.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of ibuprofen arginate in the treatment of patients with primary dysmenorrhoea in normal clinical practice., Study Design: In this open trial, patients received an initial oral dose of ibuprofen arginine 600mg at the onset of pain, followed by the same dose every 6 hours, if necessary, with a maximum daily dose of 2400mg. The study assessed the evolution of pain intensity, rapidity of action, need for supplementary analgesics, decrease in working or school hours lost, and safety and tolerability of ibuprofen arginine treatment. Each patient was evaluated prior to inclusion in the study and after one and three cycles., Results: From the 1093 recruited patients, 854 women were evaluable for safety and tolerability, and 838 for efficacy. Significant improvement in pain relief was observed 15 minutes after treatment compared with baseline values (p < 0.001). At 15 and 30 minutes the percentage of patients reporting a marked decrease in pain intensity was 82.2% and 97.6%, respectively. Additionally, a significant reduction in absenteeism from work or school (from a mean of 4.6-0.8 hours per cycle) was observed (p < 0.001). Thirty-eight patients presented with adverse events in the trial period, but only 26 subjects (3% of 854) in the adverse events cohort reported having a possible adverse event, with gastrointestinal complaints being the most frequent., Conclusion: Ibuprofen arginine appears to be effective, fast, safe and well tolerated in the treatment of patients with primary dysmenorrhoea.