[Calcium pros and cons: long term use of bisphosphonates. Bisphophonate should not be used for long term].

It is ten years since bisphophonates have been used for osteoporosis treatment in Japan, while the number of long term bisphosphonate treatment patients has been increased. Recently atypical femoral fractures or osteonecrosis of jaw have been reported. Although incidence of atypical fractures is very rare compared to the number of the patients under bisphosphonate treatment, these conditions are thought caused by severely suppressed bone turnover by the treatment. If the osteoporotic patients under long term bisphophonates treatment have not high fracture risk, drug holiday should be considered.