International Osteoporosis Foundation Announces First-of-its-Kind Partnership With University of Oxford, Amgen and UCB to Combat Global Public Health Burden of Osteoporosis¹

Hip and Vertebral Fractures are Costly for Society and Can be Life-Altering for Patients^2,3

NYON, Switzerland (June 16, 2020) The International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF) has today announced a partnership with Amgen and UCB, in collaboration with the University of Oxford, to support its Capture the Fracture^® program, which aims to reduce hip and vertebral fractures by 25% by 2025. Currently, it is estimated that more than 200 million people worldwide suffer from osteoporosis,⁴ resulting in an osteoporosis-related fracture every three seconds.⁵

Osteoporosis is a serious chronic condition that weakens bones over time, making them thinner and more likely to break,⁵ but there are steps patients and healthcare providers can take to reduce fracture risk.¹ Capture the Fracture, an IOF initiative, now supported by Amgen and UCB in collaboration with the University of Oxford, is a global program that helps to proactively implement post-fracture care (PFC) coordination programs in hospitals and healthcare systems to help patients prevent subsequent fractures due to osteoporosis. Even after an osteoporosis-related fracture approximately 80% of individuals at high risk are still not identified or treated.⁶

"Osteoporosis remains a global concern, resulting in 8.9 million fractures in a single year³ and a previous fracture increases the risk of another osteoporosis-related fracture by 86%.⁷ Early intervention through improved post-fracture identification, diagnosis and treatment in appropriate patients can help improve outcomes while also lessening the cost burden on healthcare systems,”⁵ said Darryl Sleep, M.D., senior vice president of Global Medical and chief medical officer at Amgen. “Supporting Capture the Fracture represents our proactive approach to care designed to predict and help prevent potentially life-altering fractures before they happen.”

“We are currently witnessing a significant disease burden. As the worldwide aging population steadily increases, it has never been more important to address the impact that osteoporosis and associated fractures can have on individuals,” said professor Cyrus Cooper, president of the International Osteoporosis Foundation and professor of Musculoskeletal Science at the University of Oxford.

“We know post-fracture coordinated care implementation is the most effective⁸ and efficient intervention to close the secondary fracture prevention gap, so I’m delighted that Amgen, UCB and the University of Oxford will support our Capture the Fracture program as we embark on a mission to improve outcomes for patients,” said IOF chief executive officer, Dr. Philippe Halbout.

Osteoporosis is treated by multiple specialties, underscoring the need for coordinated care to support patients with the disease. At the core of the Capture the Fracture model is a care coordinator who can help patients with an osteoporosis-related fracture be identified, screened, diagnosed and appropriately treated to reduce their future fracture risk. Post-fracture care coordination programs have been shown to improve diagnosis and treatment rates.^8,9 This partnership aims to double the 390 existing Capture the Fracture programs by the end of 2022, and will focus on key regions including Asia Pacific, Latin America, the Middle East, and Europe.

“The introduction of the post-fracture care model is recognized as a progressive milestone in the management of osteoporosis and osteoporotic fractures, and remains a profound example of what good looks like in coordination of care among multiple disconnected players,” said Professor Dr. Iris Loew-Friedrich, chief medical officer and executive vice president, UCB. “Collaboration and cross learning are necessary if we are to face the challenges of the future and find a way to lessen the burden faced by healthcare systems and people living with osteoporosis.This global partnership supports UCB's ambition of connected healthcare, finding ways to deliver more for the patient and transforming the lives of people with severe diseases.”

This partnership also welcomes collaboration from existing fracture prevention coalitions on international, national and regional levels to drive fracture prevention policy change and prioritization. Additional elements of the partnership include developing and implementing efficiencies and best practice sharing across PFC program sites, creating a digital tool that documents and communicates PFC effectiveness, and providing virtual and in-person mentorship and learning opportunities for healthcare providers.

“Capture the Fracture is an incredible opportunity to take the academic skills and expertise from the University to deliver real improvements in patient care for osteoporosis,” said Dr. Kassim Javaid, associate professor, the Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics, Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Sciences (NDORMS), University of Oxford. Dr. Javaid, along with Dr. Rafael Pinedo-Villanueva, will be responsible for the mentorship program and for developing care pathway and benefits calculator software for the PFC program. “We hope that through this program millions of lives will be changed and we look forward to working with national and international colleagues to deliver this vision.” 

For more information about Capture the Fracture, visit http://www.capturethefracture.org.
View information about the Capture the Fracture Partnership

###

References

1. International Osteoporosis Foundation. IOF Compendium of Osteoporosis 2nd Edition. http://www.worldosteoporosisday.org/sites/default/WOD-2019/resources/co…. Accessed March 11, 2020.
2. Burge et al. Incidence and economic burden of osteoporosis-related fractures in the United States, 2005-2025. J Bone Miner Res. 2007; Mar;22(3):465-475.
3. Johnell O, Kanis JA. An estimate of the worldwide prevalence and disability associated with osteoporotic fractures. Osteoporos Int. 2006;17:1726-1733.
4. Reginster JY, Burlet N. Osteoporosis: A still increasing prevalence. Bone. 2006;38 (2 Suppl 1):S4-S9
5. International Osteoporosis Foundation. Capture The Fracture – A global campaign to break the fragility fracture cycle (October 2012). http://share.iofbonehealth.org/WOD/2012/report/WOD12-Report.pdf. Accessed March 11, 2020.
6. Nguyen TV, Center JR, Eisman JA. Osteoporosis: underrated, underdiagnosed and undertreated. Med J Aust. 2004;180:S18-S22.
7. Kanis et al. A meta-analysis of previous fracture and fracture risk. Bone 2004 35;375-82
8. Akesson et al. Capture the Fracture: a Best Practice Framework and global campaign to break the fragility fracture cycle. Osteoporos Int. 2013 Aug;24(8):2135-52
9. Ganda et al. Models of care for the secondary prevention of osteoporotic fractures: a systematic review and meta-analysis Osteoporos Int (2013) 24:393–406