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CompletedNCT00000427Updated Dec 9, 2013

Effects of Parathyroid Hormone in Men With Osteoporosis

A Phase 3 interventional study of Parathyroid hormone and Alendronate in Osteoporosis, sponsored by Massachusetts General Hospital. Completed at 1 site in United States. Open to male participants aged 46 Years to 85 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2013-12-09.

Sponsored by Massachusetts General Hospital · Phase 3, Interventional, and Treatment

Phase
Phase 3
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
81
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
46 Years to 85 Years
Sex
Male
01

Study summary

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.

Read the detailed description

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.

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Conditions studied

  • Osteoporosis

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Keywords

  • Parathyroid Hormone (PTH)
  • Alendronate
  • Bone metabolism
  • Bone mineral density (BMD)
  • Bone loss
  • Postmenopausal osteoporosis
  • Osteoporosis in men
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In context

Osteoporosis

1,640 studies on the registry are indexed under Osteoporosis; 212 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 81 is below the median of 95 across 1,133 interventional studies indexed under Osteoporosis.

Browse Osteoporosis studies →

Lead sponsor

Massachusetts General Hospital is the lead sponsor of 2,536 studies on the registry; 446 are open to participants now.

Of its 214 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 161 (75%) have results posted.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

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Who can participate

Ages eligible
46 Years to 85 Years
Sexes eligible
Male
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

  • 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

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • 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
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Study design

Phase
Phase 3
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
81 participants

Interventions

  • DrugParathyroid hormone
  • DrugAlendronate
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Study locations

1 site
  • Massachusetts General Hospital
    Boston, Massachusetts 02114, United States
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References and documents

Publications

  • Finkelstein JS, Klibanski A, Schaefer EH, Hornstein MD, Schiff I, Neer RM. Parathyroid hormone for the prevention of bone loss induced by estrogen deficiency. N Engl J Med. 1994 Dec 15;331(24):1618-23. doi: 10.1056/NEJM199412153312404. PubMed 7969342 ↗
  • Finkelstein JS, Hayes A, Hunzelman JL, Wyland JJ, Lee H, Neer RM. The effects of parathyroid hormone, alendronate, or both in men with osteoporosis. N Engl J Med. 2003 Sep 25;349(13):1216-26. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa035725. Epub 2003 Sep 20. PubMed 14500805 ↗
  • Finkelstein JS, Leder BZ, Burnett SM, Wyland JJ, Lee H, de la Paz AV, Gibson K, Neer RM. Effects of teriparatide, alendronate, or both on bone turnover in osteoporotic men. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2006 Aug;91(8):2882-7. doi: 10.1210/jc.2006-0190. Epub 2006 May 9. PubMed 16684825 ↗
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Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Dec 9, 2013, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
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Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT00000427
Lead sponsor
Massachusetts General Hospital
Collaborators
National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS)
Responsible party
Joel S. Finkelstein, MD (Associate Professor of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital) — Principal investigator
First posted
Jan 19, 2000
Start date
Sep 1999
Primary completion
Oct 2005
Completion
Oct 2005
Last update
Dec 9, 2013

Study contacts

Joel S. Finkelstein, MD
principal investigator · Massachusetts General Hospital
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

Not currently enrolling

This study is completed, as verified in Dec 2013. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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