The prevalence of patients treated for osteoporosis in Greenland is low compared to Denmark

• Published in: International Journal of Circumpolar Health
• Main Authors: Kira Amalie Sten, Emma Elisabeth Højgaard, Marie Balslev Backe, Michael Lynge Pedersen, Nils Skovgaard, Stig Andersen, Nadja Albertsen
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2022
• Subjects: Osteoporosis; treatment prevalence; hip fractures; Greenland; Denmark; Arctic; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Circumpolar Health; International Journal of Circumpolar Health
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1080/22423982.2022.2078473; https://doaj.org/article/6e5c4deca02e4f95a9980e739a92bad4

The study is a register-based cross-sectional study aiming to estimate the prevalence of treated osteoporosis in Greenland compared to Denmark and provide a description of the patients with osteoporosis in Greenland. In addition, the study estimates the incidence of hip fractures in Greenland from 2018 to 2020 among people aged 65 years or older. The overall prevalence of patients prescribed medication for osteoporosis among those aged 18 years or older was 0.56% in Greenland and 2.36% in Denmark (p < 0.001). Among those aged 50 years or older, the prevalence was 1.28% and 4.71% in Greenland and Denmark, respectively (p < 0.001). The prevalence increased to 3.41% and 11.18% among patients aged 80 years or older in Greenland and Denmark, respectively. The incidence of hip fractures in Greenland was 6.55 per 1,000 inhabitants in 2020 compared to 5.65 per 1,000 inhabitants in Denmark (NS). In conclusion, the prevalence of treated osteoporosis in Greenland was less than one in four of that of Denmark. The incidence of hip fractures was similar in Greenland than in Denmark. Hence, our findings suggest that a marked number of subjects with osteoporosis in Greenland go untreated.