An evaluation of patients' preferences for osteoporosis medications and their attributes: the PREFER-International study.

Background: Patients' preferences for medications may be important in determining their compliance with therapy, particularly in the case of an asymptomatic chronic disease such as osteoporosis. Although preferences for certain attributes of osteoporosis medications, including dosing frequency and tolerability, can be evaluated in short-term clinical trials, years of use may be necessary for differences in effectiveness in reducing fracture risk to emerge.

Objectives: The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the relative importance of various attributes in determining patients' preferences for osteoporosis medications.