[Absolute risk for fracture and WHO guideline. Economic analysis of pharmacotherapy for osteoporosis].

A cost about osteoporotic fracture and an outline by a pharmacotherapeutic cost-effectiveness study were described. The burden of osteoporosis is usually due to osteoporotic fractures. In Japan, medical and care expenditures on hip and spine fractures were estimated at 7,974 approximately 9,895 hundred million yen. The cost-effectiveness of pharmacotherapy for osteoporosis is markedly affected by age, a cost of intervention, and its offset time. Therefore, more favorable cost-effectiveness is expected if a fracture risk of a subject is higher. An active treatment for the aged patient with osteoporosis is greatly significant for medical economy. With a threshold of US dollars 30,000 per QALY (quality adjusted life years) gained, an intervention for osteoporosis is decided to be cost-effective.