Background: Osteoporosis is a major comorbidity of the elderly. With a high prevalence of primary disease as well as disease-related complications, early diagnosis and treatment is paramount. Medical therapy is available to decrease the rate of bone loss and reduce the rate of fractures.
Methods: Using a poster consisting of a simple checklist and prescriptive algorithm, displayed in examination areas at a single center primary care clinic in an underserved urban community, we evaluated whether a targeted reminder of evidence-based practices would improve the rate of osteoporosis diagnosis and treatment initiation.
Results: Screening via DEXA scans and billable encounters for management of bone density disorders dramatically increased after a 12-month periodfollowing posting of screening guidelines in clinical examination areas (p<0.05).
Conclusions: Targeted reminders of evidence-based practices in examination areas are a low-cost method of increasing physician adherence to guidelinesin the primary care setting. Whether this intervention decreased rate and/or severity of fractures is an area for future study.
