Actonel is used to prevent and treat osteoporosis in postmenopausal women, glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis, and Paget's disease.
Actonel is also used to treat osteoporosis in men. Risedronate belongs to a group of drugs known as bisphosphonates, which are commonly used to treat some cases of osteoporosis. These drugs work to prevent bone breakdown by affecting osteoclasts, i.e. the cells responsible for bone resorption, which reduces the rate of bone resorption and thus leads to an indirect increase in bone mineral density.