The following recommendations pertain to people aged 65 years or older with a hip or vertebral fracture. They are directed to all health care professionals who participate in the care of these patients (including, but not limited to, orthopedic surgeons, rheumatologists, endocrinologists, family physicians and primary care providers, fracture liaison service coordinators, geriatricians, occupational therapists, physical therapists, rehabilitation therapists, emergency department physicians, gynecologists, hospitalists, infusion nurses, internists, neurosurgeons, nurse practitioners, dentists, oral and maxillofacial surgeons, pharmacists, physician assistants, radiologists, registered dietitian nutritionists, and chiropractors).
An important overarching principle for the recommendations is that people aged 65 years or older with a hip or vertebral fracture optimally should be managed in the context of a multidisciplinary clinical system that includes case management (one example is a fracture liaison service) to assure that they are appropriately evaluated and treated for osteoporosis and risk of future fractures.