Research has shown that a single intravenous dose of the bisphosphonate drug, zoledronic acid, can increase bone density within in year in women with osteopenia or osteoporosis.

During a trial, the new 15-minute drug treatment was found to lessen the incidence of fractures by more than 40%, which means that women can be protected from developing brittle bones without having to take regular pills, the Guardian reported.

Results of the three-year trial, involving 8000 British women, were published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

According to the researchers treatment with zoledronic acid was linked to a 70% reduction in fractures of the vertebrae of the spine and a 41% reduction in hip fractures.

Fractures elsewhere in the body, such as the wrist, were reduced by some 25%. Currently, pills to treat osteoporosis are taken daily, but one of the problems with this form of treatment is that sufferers often stop taking the drugs.

Prof Dennis Black, from the University of California, who led the study, said: "A regimen of infusions once a year appears to ensure that patients will have a full treatment effect for at least 12 months.

"In contrast, many patients who receive prescriptions for oral bisphosphonates stop treatment, and most appear to be taking less than 80% of their prescribed pills by 12 months."

Dr David Reid, of the University of Aberdeen and a co-author of the study, said that the hip fracture data were particularly relevant. "Preventing hip fractures remains the holy grail of treating osteoporosis, as we know that six months after a hip fracture, nearly a fifth of patients will be dead."

"Reducing hip fractures by 41% is therefore highly clinically significant," Dr Reid added.