Features of FRAX and CAROC fracture risk calculators
| Feature | FRAX* | CAROC† |
|---|---|---|
| Clinical risk factors | Age (40–90 yr) | Age (> 50 yr) |
| Sex | Sex | |
| Weight | ||
| Height | ||
| Previous fracture in adulthood | Fractures since age 40 | |
| Parent fractured hip | ||
| Current smoking | ||
| Glucocorticoid use‡ | Glucocorticoid use§ | |
| Rheumatoid arthritis | ||
| Secondary osteoporosis | ||
| Consumes ≥ 3 units alcohol per day | ||
| Bone mineral density | Femoral neck BMD optional | Femoral neck BMD required¶ |
| Other considerations | Incorporates competing risk of mortality | No competing risk of mortality |
| Different algorithms can be used for different | No different algorithms for different ethnicities | |
| ethnicities and countries | ||
| Involves interactions between variables | No interactions between individual variables | |
| Type of fractures predicted | Hip fracture within 10 years | |
| Major osteoporotic fracture within 10 years | Osteoporotic fracture within 10 years |
Note: BMD = bone mineral density, CAROC = Canadian Association of Radiologists and Osteoporosis Canada, FRAX = Fracture Risk Assessment Tool.
↵* FRAX is available at www.sheffield.ac.uk/FRAX.
↵† CAROC is available at https://osteoporosis.ca/health-care-professionals/tools/caroc.
↵‡ FRAX: Exposed to oral glucocorticoids for more than 3 months at a dose of prednisolone of 5 mg daily or more or current use.
↵§ CAROC: History of glucocorticoid use for 3 months or more in the past 1 year at 7.5 mg prednisone equivalent.
↵¶ If fracture risk is low or undefined based on femoral neck BMD, and T-score is ≤ −2.5 at either lumbar spine or total hip, fracture risk is increased to moderate.