Patients with osteoporotic vertebral fractures in Denmark 2010-2018: A national registry analysis

Introduction: The incidence of and health and socioeconomic characteristics of Osteoporotic Vertebral Fractures (OVFs) patients in Denmark is not well described. Availability of multiple national health and economic registries allowing linking of individual patient data may provide information not previously evaluated. The purpose of this study is to describe the sociodemographic and health characteristics of individuals in Denmark with OVFs compared to a matched control group without OVFs.

Methods: We identified all individuals with hospital diagnosed OVFs from 2010 to 2018 from the Danish National Patient Register. These individuals were matched to a control group based on sex, age, and municipality of residence. Work status prior to the OVF was categorized as employed, receiving benefits, early retirement, or pension. Comorbidities based on hospital diagnoses recorded within 10 years prior to the fracture date was also collected.

Results: From 2010 to 2018, 20,262 individuals had a hospital contact for OVFs. Sixty-four percent were women with a mean age of73.6 (SD 12.4) years. OVF incidence increased from 86 in 2010 to 142 per 100,000 persons in 2018. In 2018, the regional incidence ranged from 120 to 154 per 100,000. More than a fifth of the patients were working prior to the fracture, while 77% were in early retirement or old-age pension. The population with OVF had more comorbidities than the matched comparison group.

Conclusion : The incidence of hospital diagnosed OVFs increased during the last decade which may be due to an actual increase or improved diagnosis with some regional variation. Although widely believed to be a disease in the elderly, this study showed that more than 20% of patients were still working, emphasizing the burden of this disease to society.