Effect of Therapeutic Exercise and Pharmacological Managements for Back Pain in Osteoporosis without Vertebral Fracture

Abstract

Three types of therapies for osteoporotic back pain were investigated. [Subjects and Methods] The subjects were 51 females with back pain without vertebral fracture, who presented bone mineral densities of less than 80% of the young adult mean (YAM). The following therapies were conducted: exercise (n=4: mean age, 74.5 ± 12.2 years), osteoporosis drugs (n=21: mean age, 76.8 ± 8.4 years), and combined therapy with exercise and drugs (n=21: mean age, 77.2 ± 7.6 years). Pain intensity measured on the visual analog scale (VAS), YAM, and urinary type I collagen cross-linked N-telopeptide (uNTX) were measured at baseline and six months after the therapeutic interventions. [Results] After six months, VAS and YAM were unchanged in all of the groups, while uNTX of the combined therapy group showed a statistically significant decrease, indicating suppression of bone absorption by combined therapy. [Conclusion] The results suggest that combined therapy with exercise and osteoporosis drugs normalizes bone metabolism, resulting in a decrease in uNTX.