New benchmark set to deliver optimal osteoporosis care throughout Asia Pacific
– Launch of first pan-Asia Pacific minimum clinical standards for the screening, diagnosis & management of osteoporosis – |
The Asia Pacific Consortium on Osteoporosis (APCO) has today (Thursday, January 28, 2021) launched the first pan-Asia Pacific clinical practice standards for the screening, diagnosis, and management of osteoporosis, targeting a broad range of high-risk groups.
Published in Osteoporosis International today, ‘The APCO Framework’ comprises 16 minimum clinical standards set to serve as a benchmark for the provision of optimal osteoporosis care in the region. Developed by APCO members representing key osteoporosis stakeholders, and multiple medical and surgical specialities, this set of clear, concise, relevant and pragmatic clinical standards aims to support national societies, guidelines development authorities, and health care policy makers with the development of new guidelines, and to encourage the revision of existing guidelines. According to the Framework lead author, APCO Chairperson, and Director of the Osteoporosis and “Utilising a comprehensive, four-round Delphi consensus method enabled our APCO members who work in vastly different health care systems, to reach a remarkable level of consensus on a benchmark set of clinical standards for the provision of quality osteoporosis care for the Asia Pacific region.” The APCO Framework offers clinicians structured, well-articulated, and readily accessible clinical practice guidelines that define: “Implementation of The APCO Framework, or a similar set of standards of care informed by the Framework, is expected to significantly reduce the burden of osteoporosis not only in the Asia Pacific region, but also worldwide. We hope that the Framework can serve as a stimulus for harmonisation of guidelines in other regions that have similar socio-economic diversity and heterogeneity of health care resources,” Dr Chandran said. Globally, the population aged 65 years or over increased from six per cent in 1990, to nine per cent in 2019.(1) Osteoporotic fractures among Asia-Pacific populations are expected to increase exponentially, not only because of the region’s rapidly aging population, but also due to mounting urbanisation, and the subsequent increase in sedentary lifestyles.(4) Despite the presence of generally safe and effective treatments for osteoporosis, as many as five in six patients presenting to their primary care physician (PCP), or to a hospital with a fragility fracture, will not be assessed for osteoporosis, nor appropriately managed to prevent further fracture.(5) According to Medical Director of Osteoporosis Australia, and APCO Executive Committee member, “In fact, a prior fracture at any site is associated with a doubling of future fracture and mortality risk. The unfortunate ramifications of the gross under-diagnosis and under-treatment of osteoporosis is that a large number of people sustain further debilitating secondary fractures, which places a substantial, but importantly, preventable burden on already strained healthcare systems,” said Prof Ebeling. A fragility fracture, which occurs every three seconds worldwide,(6) compromises quality of life and loss of independence.(6),(7) Concerningly, one-in-four patients who sustain a hip fracture die within a year, and less than half of those who survive, regain their previous level of function.(8),(9) In 2010, an estimated 158 million people aged According to International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF) CEO and APCO Executive Committee member, “Anecdotal evidence to date reveals significant inconsistencies in osteoporosis clinical practice guidelines in the Asia Pacific region, which vary widely in scope and recommendations. This was confirmed when we analysed the 18 guidelines. “Implementation of the minimum clinical standards proposed by The APCO Framework, and reform of existing guidelines, will support clinical improvement initiatives, while also paving the way for a more holistic approach to osteoporosis care, and ultimately, greater consistency across all national and regional clinical practice guidelines in the region,” Dr Halbout said. To download or access The APCO Framework, head to www.apcobonehealth.org/apco-framework To learn more, visit www.apcobonehealth.org or follow APCO on LinkedIn: asia-pacific-consortium-on-osteoporosis About APCO The Asia Pacific Consortium on Osteoporosis (APCO) comprises osteoporosis experts from several countries and regions in the Asia Pacific, charged with developing tangible solutions to the substantive challenges involving osteoporosis management and fracture prevention in this most populated and fastest growing part of the world. APCO’s mission is to engage with relevant stakeholders, including healthcare providers, policy makers and the public, to help develop and implement country and region-specific programs for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis, and its complication of fragility fractures, in the Asia Pacific. About IOF The International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF) is the world’s largest non-governmental organisation dedicated to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis and related musculoskeletal diseases. IOF’s mission is to promote bone and musculoskeletal health as a worldwide priority. The 5IQ analysis and Delphi consensus process The Delphi technique (a structured communication technique using a systematic, interactive forecasting method reliant upon an expert panel) was employed to achieve APCO member consensus for the development of clinical standards of care.(11) EXPERTS AVAILABLE FOR INTERVIEW Dr Manju Chandran – APCO Executive Committee Chairperson, Senior Consultant, Department of Endocrinology, Director, Osteoporosis & Bone Metabolism Unit, Singapore General Hospital, SINGAPORE Dr Philippe Halbout – Chief Executive Officer (CEO), International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF), APCO Executive Committee member, SWITZERLAND Prof. Peter Ebeling AO – Medical Director, Osteoporosis Australia & APCO Executive Committee member, AUSTRALIA Dr Zhao Yanling – Obstetrician & Gynaecologist, Beijing United Family Hospital, & APCO Member, Beijing, CHINA Prof. Atsushi Suzuki – Professor & Chair, Department of Endocrinology & Metabolism, Fujita Health University & APCO Member, JAPAN Prof. Yoon-Sok Chung – Professor, Department of Endocrinology & Metabolism, Director, Ajou Institute on Aging, Ajou University Medical Center & APCO Member, SOUTH KOREA Dr Hew Fen Lee – Consultant Endocrinologist, Puchong Medical Specialist Centre, Subang Jaya Medical Centre & APCO member, MALAYSIA Dato’ Dr. Lee Joon-Kiong – Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon, Beacon Hospital & APCO Member, MALAYSIA Dr Nigel Gilchrist – Specialist Consultant Physician, Canterbury District Health Board & APCO ExecutiveCommittee Member, Christchurch, NEW ZEALAND Mr Paul Mitchell – Adjunct Senior Lecturer, School of Medicine, University of Notre Dame Australia & APCO Executive Committee Member, Auckland, NEW ZEALAND MEDIA CONTACTS & INTERVIEWS Kirsten Bruce & Mel Kheradi, VIVA! Communications, Sydney, Australia DOWNLOAD THE APCO FRAMEWORK DIGITAL MEDIA KIT: www.apcoframeworkmediakit.org
|