This group was very helpful for me when I was making a decision about starting Evenity a year ago. Like most of you, I had many concerns about the possible side effects. Now that I finished the 12th shot a few weeks ago, I am happy to share that the shots went very well and my bone growth was better than I had expected.
Previously I had taken Fosamax for many years, and Reclast for a few years. They slowed down the bone loss, but I was still losing about .1 in the spine, hip, and fermoral neck nearly every year or two for the last 18 years. I'm currently 72 and very petite. My doctor had told me I was the perfect target for osteoporosis.
With Evenity, I had no annoying side effect from any of the shots, though a few months I think I was slightly more tired the day following the shots. After about 3 months shots, I made sure that the shots felt room temperature each time so that they wouldn't sting. If they still felt rather cool, I would warm them in my hands. I also asked that the nurse inject the shots slowly because that seemed to help avoid any slight soreness the following day. I had both shots for the month in the same arm, then switched to the other arm the next month, then back to the first arm. I also drank lots of water,
After the second month, I had a blood test which showed my alkaline phosphatase was above the normal range. Concerned that it could indicate liver issues, I had an isoenzyme blood test which indicated the liver was not a concern. The bone component of the test was what was high, likely indicating that the Evenity was doing its job for the bone growth. The numbers all returned to normal by my next test a few months later.
The results of my recent DEXA show a T- score increase of 20.7% in the lumbar spine, an increase of 9.8% in the total hip, and 6.0% in the femoral neck. The spine is now in the normal range, the hip is osteopenic, and the femoral neck is still in the osteoporosis range, though slightly improved. I will be having a Reclast infusion in about 10 days.
I hope this positive information is helpful to someone in this group who may be facing the decision as to whether or not to start Evenity. For me, it was a wise decision.