Completed

Effects of Parathyroid Hormone in Men With Osteoporosis

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What is being tested

Parathyroid hormone

+ Alendronate
Drug
Who is being recruted

Osteoporosis

From 46 to 85 Years
+5 Eligibility Criteria

See all eligibility criteria

How is the trial designed

Treatment Study

Phase 3
Interventional
Study Start: September 1999

See protocol details

Summary

Principal SponsorMassachusetts General Hospital
Last updated: December 9, 2013
Sourced from a government-validated database.Claim as a partner
Study start date: September 1, 1999Actual date on which the first participant was enrolled.

Alendronate is a drug that blocks or reduces bone loss, while parathyroid hormone (PTH) stimulates the formation of new bone. The purpose of this study is to compare the bone-building effects of PTH alone, alendronate alone, and both PTH and alendronate in men with osteoporosis over a two-and-a-half year period. Osteoporosis causes bones to weaken and break more easily. Alendronate is used to treat or prevent osteoporosis. PTH is a protein hormone that increases the calcium and phosphorus release from bone, leading to formation of new bone. This study will examine the changes in bone density measured at multiple places in the skeleton and changes in chemicals in the body that indicate bone breakdown and bone formation. The study will indicate whether some breakdown of bone is required for PTH to have an overall bone-building effect in men. Participants will be randomly assigned to receive PTH alone by daily injection under the skin, alendronate alone taken by mouth, or both PTH and alendronate. The study will last 2.5 years. All participants will receive some form of treatment for osteoporosis. Blood, urine, and bone density tests will be performed at 6-month intervals. During the first 6 months, participants will come in for additional study visits. Participants who complete the initial 2.5 years of their assigned treatment will be eligible for a 12 month extension to monitor bone density and bone turnover after PTH is stopped. Participants who were receiving alendronate will continue taking alendronate. The goal of this extension is to determine what happens to bone density and turnover after PTH is stopped and whether alendronate is needed to prevent loss of PTH-induced bone gain. Participants who complete the 12 month extension while on their assigned treatment will be eligible for a second 12 month extension in which all participants receive PTH therapy. Participants who have been receiving alendronate continue taking alendronate. The goal of the second extension is to determine if responsiveness to PTH is enhanced by a 12 month suspension of PTH treatment.

Official TitleAnabolic Actions of Parathyroid Hormone in Osteoporotic Men 
Principal SponsorMassachusetts General Hospital
Last updated: December 9, 2013
Sourced from a government-validated database.Claim as a partner

Protocol

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.
Design Details
81 patients to be enrolledTotal number of participants that the clinical trial aims to recruit.
Treatment Study
These studies test new ways to treat a disease, condition, or health issue. The goal is to see if a new drug, therapy, or approach works better or has fewer side effects than existing options.

How participants are assigned to different groups/arms
In this clinical study, participants are placed into groups randomly, like flipping a coin. This ensures that the study is fair and unbiased, making the results more reliable. By assigning participants by chance, researchers can better compare treatments without external influences.

Other Ways to Assign Participants
Non-randomized allocation: Participants are assigned based on specific factors, such as their medical condition or a doctor's decision.
None (Single-arm trial): If the study has only one group, all participants receive the same treatment, and no allocation is needed.

How treatments are given to participants
Participants are divided into different groups, each receiving a specific treatment at the same time. This helps researchers compare how well different treatments work against each other.

Other Ways to Assign Treatments
Single-group assignment: Everyone gets the same treatment.
Cross-over assignment: Participants switch between treatments during the study.
Factorial assignment: Participants receive different combinations of treatments.
Sequential assignment: Participants receive treatments one after another in a specific order, possibly based on individual responses.
Other assignment: Treatment assignment does not follow a standard or predefined design.

How the interventions assigned to participants is kept confidential
Everyone involved in the study knows which treatment is being given. This is typically used when it's not possible or necessary to hide the treatment details from participants or researchers.

Other Ways to Mask Information
Single-blind: Participants do not know which treatment they are receiving, but researchers do.
Double-blind: Neither participants nor researchers know which treatment is given.
Triple-blind: Participants, researchers, and outcome assessors do not know which treatment is given.
Quadruple-blind: Participants, researchers, outcome assessors, and care providers all do not know which treatment is given.

Eligibility

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria: person's general health condition or prior treatments.
Conditions
Criteria
MaleBiological sex of participants that are eligible to enroll.
From 46 to 85 YearsRange of ages for which participants are eligible to join.
Healthy volunteers not allowedIf individuals who are healthy and do not have the condition being studied can participate.
Conditions
Pathology
Osteoporosis
Criteria
2 inclusion criteria required to participate
Bone density of the spine or femoral neck two standard deviations below the mean of young adult men
Normal renal and liver function tests, normal serum testosterone level, normal vitamin D and PTH levels
3 exclusion criteria prevent from participating
Significant cardiac, renal, hepatic, or malignant disease
Disorders (e.g., Paget's disease, hyperthyroidism, hyperparathyroidism) or drugs (e.g., steroids, anticonvulsants, lithium, bisphosphonates, calcitonin, fluoride) known to affect bone metabolism
Active peptic ulcer disease or severe reflux

Study Centers

These are the hospitals, clinics, or research facilities where the trial is being conducted. You can find the location closest to you and its status.
This study has 1 location
Suspended
Massachusetts General HospitalBoston, United StatesSee the location
CompletedOne Study Center