Comparative study of the effect of dimephosphon monophosphonate and xydiphone biphosphonate on the histomorphometric indices of rat vertebra in a model of glucocorticosteroid osteoporosis

: The efficacy of monophosphonate dimephosphon and diphosphonate xydiphon was compared by experiments in rats with an osteoporosis model induced by the chronic administration of prednisolone. The glucocorticosteroid decreased the total density of trabecules (in both bone and cartilage tissues) in histological micropreparations of lumbar vertebrae and reduced the total bone cell count and the calcium content in the bone tissue. Dimephosphon, administered on the prednisolone background over the same period of time, normalized the total relative density of trabecules (by increasing the cartilage content), the total bone cell count, and the calcium content. Under the same conditions, xydiphone normalized the total relative density of trabecules (by increasing the bone content), but did not influence the prednisolone-decreased content of cartilage, total cell count, and calcium content in the vertebrae. Thus, the test results reveal a significant advantage of dimephosphon over xydiphone.