title: Bone densitometric assessment and management of fracture risk in Indian men of prostate cancer on androgen deprivation therapy: Does practice pattern match the guidelines?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Estimation of baseline bone mineral density (BMD) at the time of instituting androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) for metastatic prostate cancer is recommended by several specialty groups and expert panels. The present study was carried out to analyze the practice pattern of Indian urologists with regard to bone densitometric assessment and management of fracture risk in men of prostate cancer on ADT, and their degree of adherence to currently available guidelines.
  
  
  METHODS
  Telephonic interviews of 108 qualified urologists, randomly selected from the member database of Urological Society of India was carried out with a predefined questionnaire. The responses were analyzed and compared with the available evidences and recommendations.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Only 19.4% urologists routinely perform a baseline BMD before starting ADT. Although majority of them prescribe calcium and vitamin D supplementation, only few tell regarding fracture risk and life-style modification to their patients. While 59.6% of the respondents use Zoledronic acid (ZA) in their patients on ADT, half of them prescribe it without knowing the BMD status, which may lead to overuse of ZA.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Majority of the urologists in India do not follow the guidelines for BMD measurement in prostate cancer. A baseline BMD may help in reducing the unnecessary use of ZA.
authors: Department of Urology and Renal Transplantation, Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Raebareli Road, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India.
authors: Manas R
authors: MR
authors: Pradhan
authors: Anil
authors: A
authors: Mandhani
authors: Saurabh S
authors: SS
authors: Chipde
authors: Alok
authors: A
authors: Srivastava
authors: Manmeet
authors: M
authors: Singh
authors: Rakesh
authors: R
authors: Kapoor
keywords: Androgen deprivation therapy; bone mineral density; osteoporosis; prostate cancer; zoledronic acid