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Hypertension, Antihypertensive Drugs and the Risk of Fractures

  • Hypertension and bone
  • Published:
Clinical Reviews in Bone and Mineral Metabolism Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Older adults have a higher prevalence of hypertension, and specifically systolic hypertension, than any other age group in the general population as the likelihood of developing hypertension during an average lifespan is high. Osteoporosis like hypertension is a chronic medical condition that can predispose the elderly to increased fracture risk. The relationship between hypertension, antihypertensive medications and osteoporosis-related fractures is complex as hypertension and the medications used to treat hypertension such as thiazide diuretics, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, angiotensin II receptor blockers, calcium channel blockers and beta-adrenergic blockers may have differential effects on bone. The purpose of this review is to provide an overview of the relationship between hypertension and bone and to examine the association between different antihypertensive medications on fracture risk in the elderly.

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Funding

Dr. Debra Butt is supported by an Investigator Award from the Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Toronto.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Toronto, Research Department, 500 University Avenue, 5th Floor, Toronto, ON, M5G 1V7, Canada

    Debra A. Butt

  2. Family and Community Medicine, The Scarborough Hospital, 3030 Lawrence Avenue East, Suite 414, Scarborough, ON, M1P-2T7, Canada

    Debra A. Butt & Richard Leu

  3. Department of Medicine, University Health Network Osteoporosis Program, Toronto General Hospital, 200 Elizabeth Street, 7 Eaton Wing North, 234A, Toronto, ON, M5G 2C4, Canada

    Raghad Alharty & Angela M. Cheung

  4. Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Angela M. Cheung

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  1. Debra A. Butt
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  2. Raghad Alharty
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  4. Angela M. Cheung
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Correspondence to Debra A. Butt.

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Debra A. Butt, Raghad Alharty, Richard Leu and Angela M. Cheung declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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The article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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Butt, D.A., Alharty, R., Leu, R. et al. Hypertension, Antihypertensive Drugs and the Risk of Fractures. Clinic Rev Bone Miner Metab 13, 160–172 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12018-015-9191-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12018-015-9191-z

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