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Is It Safe To Take Prolia Or Reclast For Osteoporosis After Abnormal Bone Density?

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Posted on Tue, 1 Apr 2014
Question: My doctor wants to put me on Prolia treatment for osteoporosis after bone density scores not good and Evista apparently not working. Someone else recommended Reclast. Side effects for both sound awful. Also interested in more natural treatment such as Ezorb calcium. How can I make educated decision. Thank you XXXXXXX
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Answered by Dr. Michelle Gibson James (1 hour later)
Brief Answer: chance of side effects occurring Detailed Answer: HI, thanks for using healthcare magic The potential side effects of any medication can be concerning but it is not just the side effects but the risk of these effects occurring. You can look at the number of persons who use these medications in medical studies and how many of them report the side effects mentioned. Drug companies must mention every side effect experienced during the course of their investigations but it does not mean that they occurred commonly. (1)Prolia From the official FDA info A study of 7800 women over 3 yrs. Some given prolia , others placebo (no medication but the persons would be given something though they would not know not an actual drug). In that study- the amount of women on prolia who experienced non fatal side effects was 25% BUT out of the placebo group 24.2% also reported these side effects Low blood count seen in 3.3% of prolia group and 2.8% of placebo group Angina in 2.6 % in prolia and 2.2 % in placebo Atrial fibrillation (abnormal heart rhythm)-2% in both groups There is an entire list of reported side effects but if you compare those receiving medication and those that didn't there wasn't much difference. This medical study was called FREEDOM. If you wish you can review the side effect profile in the table to look at the actual chance of these effects occurring. (2)RECLAST There are also studies compared to side effects that occur with the use of this drug compared with placebo A study used 581 women over 2 yr period. The risk of side effects was 10.6% for those who got the drug at the beginning of the study and again received another dose after 12 months. It was 11.4% for those who were on placebo. It may be difficult to interpret the actual studies but you need to look at whether the chance of a possible side effect is greater or less than the chance of problems occurring related to your bone density. With prolia the risk of side effects appear to be very close to placebo. You may want to review the info and consider this drug. I hope this helps, feel free to ask any other questions
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Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
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Dr. Michelle Gibson James

General & Family Physician

Practicing since :2001

Answered : 16808 Questions

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Is It Safe To Take Prolia Or Reclast For Osteoporosis After Abnormal Bone Density?

Brief Answer: chance of side effects occurring Detailed Answer: HI, thanks for using healthcare magic The potential side effects of any medication can be concerning but it is not just the side effects but the risk of these effects occurring. You can look at the number of persons who use these medications in medical studies and how many of them report the side effects mentioned. Drug companies must mention every side effect experienced during the course of their investigations but it does not mean that they occurred commonly. (1)Prolia From the official FDA info A study of 7800 women over 3 yrs. Some given prolia , others placebo (no medication but the persons would be given something though they would not know not an actual drug). In that study- the amount of women on prolia who experienced non fatal side effects was 25% BUT out of the placebo group 24.2% also reported these side effects Low blood count seen in 3.3% of prolia group and 2.8% of placebo group Angina in 2.6 % in prolia and 2.2 % in placebo Atrial fibrillation (abnormal heart rhythm)-2% in both groups There is an entire list of reported side effects but if you compare those receiving medication and those that didn't there wasn't much difference. This medical study was called FREEDOM. If you wish you can review the side effect profile in the table to look at the actual chance of these effects occurring. (2)RECLAST There are also studies compared to side effects that occur with the use of this drug compared with placebo A study used 581 women over 2 yr period. The risk of side effects was 10.6% for those who got the drug at the beginning of the study and again received another dose after 12 months. It was 11.4% for those who were on placebo. It may be difficult to interpret the actual studies but you need to look at whether the chance of a possible side effect is greater or less than the chance of problems occurring related to your bone density. With prolia the risk of side effects appear to be very close to placebo. You may want to review the info and consider this drug. I hope this helps, feel free to ask any other questions