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What Are The Long Term Side Effects Of Depo?
Hi, my wife was on depo for quite a while- about 10 years. She now has an IUD, and she s been off the shot for about 2 years. She s been experiencing a lot of back pain (she s been seeing a chiropractor) and occasional numbness in her extremities. She has also developed a problem with uncontrollable shaking in her hands and arms, although that comes and goes. My question is, can this be related to some kind of long term side effect of depo? I ve been doing a lot of research online, but I haven t found any definitive answers. (she is scheduled for an MRI this week- they ve already done a cat scan on her brain, but nothing was found)
posted on
Fri, 14 Mar 2014
Medically reviewed by
Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team
Wed, 26 Jul 2023
Answered on
Wed, 2 Aug 2023
Last reviewed on
Hi,
This medication is known to cause bone loss which may not recover once the medication has been stopped, hence the back pain might be due to this. Calcium and vitamin D supplements are recommended for women on depot or other hormonal contraceptives. As far as the numbness and tremors are concerned, it is good that MRI has been scheduled to rule out any serious conditions. I would recommend recommend vitamin B12 test, as deficiency of B12 often causes numbness in hands and feet.
Take care. Hope I have answered your question. Let me know if I can assist you further.
Regards,
Dr. Hiba Tehrim, General & Family Physician
This medication is known to cause bone loss which may not recover once the medication has been stopped, hence the back pain might be due to this. Calcium and vitamin D supplements are recommended for women on depot or other hormonal contraceptives. As far as the numbness and tremors are concerned, it is good that MRI has been scheduled to rule out any serious conditions. I would recommend recommend vitamin B12 test, as deficiency of B12 often causes numbness in hands and feet.
Take care. Hope I have answered your question. Let me know if I can assist you further.
Regards,
Dr. Hiba Tehrim, General & Family Physician
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