Characteristics of patients on entry to trial
| No treatment(n = 95) | Ca(n = 85) | Et(n = 81) | Et+Ca(n = 88) | Total(n = 349) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BMD, bone mineral density; Ca, calcium; Et, etidronate. | |||||
| Stratum A (n) | 46 | 42 | 41 | 42 | 171 |
| Stratum B (n) | 38 | 33 | 33 | 33 | 137 |
| Stratum C (n) | 11 | 10 | 7 | 13 | 41 |
| % male | 61.1 | 57.6 | 51.9 | 59.1 | 57.6 |
| Weight (kg) | |||||
| Mean (SD) | 72.4 (12.8) | 72.4 (14.2) | 74.8 (15.0) | 76.3 (16.0) | 73.9 (14.5) |
| N | 94 | 82 | 76 | 84 | 336 |
| Age (years) | |||||
| Mean (SD) | 60.2 (7.6) | 60.3 (6.0) | 59.5 (7.5) | 58.7 (7.7) | 59.7 (7.3) |
| N | 94 | 82 | 76 | 85 | 337 |
| Activities | |||||
| Limited | 40 | 35 | 40 | 36 | 151 |
| Normal | 48 | 42 | 31 | 41 | 162 |
| Brisk | 6 | 5 | 5 | 8 | 24 |
| Missing | 1 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 12 |
| Previously diagnosed osteoporotic fractures at entry (n) | 9 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 37 |
| Semi-quantitative fractures evident on x ray at entry (n) | 24 | 26 | 31 | 25 | 106 |
| Either of above (n) | 27 | 28 | 34 | 29 | 118 (34%) |
| Standardised BMD L2–L4 (mg/cm2) | |||||
| Mean (SD) | 1017 (196) | 987 (173) | 997 (152) | 954 (199) | 989 (182) |
| N | 46 | 43 | 37 | 41 | 167 |
| Standardised BMD proximal femur (mg/cm2) | |||||
| Mean (SD) | 799 (150) | 795 (138) | 806 (118) | 794 (152) | 798 (140) |
| N | 47 | 42 | 37 | 41 | 167 |