Osteoporosis Drug Side Effects
Are there side effects related to drugs used to treat osteoporosis?
Well, like any group of medications there may be side effects in osteoporosis treatment. We could start with estrogen. Estrogen, in some people, causes some nausea. That's not a prominent symptom. More important might be the development of a blood clot, and, of course, the worst would be breast cancer. This occurs in a small but significant percentage of women. If we go on to the bisphosphonate drugs, which are now more commonly used than estrogen, these drugs taken orally can cause upset stomach or heartburn. Fortunately, that's like five- or maybe ten-percent of people at the most. So, there isn't much in the way of side effects from those drugs. Raloxifene is a relative of estrogen which is sometimes used. That can cause more hot flashes than you started with, and it might also cause a small incidence of blood clots.
How do I protect myself from bone loss caused by cortisone usage?
One of the more common reasons for developing osteoporosis is taking cortisone or cortisone-like drugs. Fortunately, the bone loss from cortisone can be completely prevented by taking adequate calcium, Vitamin D and most importantly taking a bisphosphonate drug.
Do drugs that decrease testosterone increase my risk for osteoporosis?
With regards to drugs that decrease testosterone increasing the risk of osteoporosis, men with prostate cancer are often treated with drugs which basically wipe out testosterone production in the body, nearly completely. In that case, men will lose bone. Fortunately, bisphosphonate drugs completely protect the skeleton of these men against bone loss.
Do drugs that lower estrogen put me at risk for developing osteoporosis?
Now, one of the more common treatments for breast cancer patients are drugs which almost completely wipe out oestrogen in the body. These drugs, therefore, can lead to a little more bone loss than is experienced by the average post-menopausal woman. Studies have shown that taking bisphosphonate drugs simultaneously completely prevents the bone loss.
What is "osteonecrosis of the jaw"?
There has been recent publicity about a very strange and unusual condition called osteonecrosis of the jaw. This is a condition in which the gums in a certain area of the jaw are eroded and below that the bone is more or less destroyed. This can be very painful, of course. This has occurred in a very tiny percentage of patients with osteoporosis who have taken bisphosphonate drugs. It occurs a little more frequently in cancer patients who are given these drugs interveneously and in much higher doses, so that there is a belief among certain doctors that the bisphosphonate drugs can rarely cause this unfortunate side effect.
