Etidronate: what is its place in treatment of primary osteoporosis and other demineralizing diseases today?

Bisphosphonate drugs are the major treatment options for primary and secondary osteoporosis and other demineralizing bone diseases. This class of drugs was presaged over a decade ago when etidronate disodium, the "mother compound" for modern-day bisphosphonates, was first used in the treatment of osteoporosis. The cyclic use of etidronate in therapy, which is known mainly to specialists in the field, is not approved in the United States. The drug does, however, have a worldwide reputation as a relatively inexpensive, efficacious, and highly tolerable treatment for osteoporosis. Many studies still describe its use for primary osteoporosis and some have described use in immobilization bone loss, periprosthetic bone loss, and even glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis. This review highlights some of these uses.