The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Osteoporosis Diagnosis and Treatment in Iran: A National Study
The present study demonstrated that the COVID-19 pandemic negatively affected the diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis. However, it was limited by the lack of data on prescriptions for other osteoporosis medications and diagnostic tests, the lack of access to the data on prescriptions for people whose costs are not covered by the IHIO, and the restricted data access regarding the presented data. The findings are based on prescription-level data in Iran and primarily reflect practice within this healthcare context; therefore, caution is required when generalizing to settings with different healthcare systems or population structures. Further studies are needed to assess this impact and to help prevent management disruption in future health crises.
Authors
- Fatemeh Hajivalizadeh (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8125-5731)
- Kazem Khalagi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0890-6232)
- Noushin Fahimfar (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6205-9794)
- Mahnaz Sanjari (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2992-6184)
- Amirhossein Aghakhani (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1804-6034)
- Afshin Ostovar (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8670-5797)
- Mohammad Javad Mansourzadeh (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0666-7928)
- Elahe Hesari (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2802-1677)
- Zahra Shahali (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5457-5999)
- Sepideh Hajivalizadeh (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0393-1196)
- Parastoo Montazerlotf
- Mohammad Effatpanah
- Pardis Zarepour
- Saeed Shahsavari
Institutions
- Imam Khomeini Hospital (IR)
- Research Institute for Endocrine Sciences (IR)
- Jahrom University of Medical Sciences (IR)
- Ministry of Health and Medical Education (IR)
- Center for Non-Communicable Diseases (PK)
- Alborz University of Medical Sciences (IR)
- Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences (IR)
- Tehran University of Medical Sciences (IR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- International Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism
- Published
- 2025-10-31
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.5812/ijem-165816
- Primary Topic
- Bone health and osteoporosis research
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00