Forteo: What is your Experience?

I was on Forteo for 6 months. I had no side effects except for injection site reaction, however, because my 24 hour urine for calcium was elevated prior to taking it, it just continued to get higher and higher and would get kidney stones if I didn't stop it. 3 months into taking Forteo, my P1NP went up to 250 from 68! It's too bad I had to get off this drug. I followed up with an infusion of Reclast and of course I experienced flu like symptoms but was relieved when taking Tylenol every 6 hours for 36 hours. Took a few days to be back to myself. Just started taking transdermal bioidentical hrt and progesterone for one week and will be going for bloodwork in 6 weeks to see my estradiol level since loss of estrogen was my main cause of osteoporosis and secondary cause is having hypercalcuria. My 2nd endocrinologist prescribed a low dose of chlorthalidone back in December and I have follow up bloodwork including my CTX. I also consult with Dr. Keith McCormick, and he said by taking transdermal hrt, it will help my CTX as well as my hypercalcuria and that I wouldn't need to be on chlorthalidone. He states this fact in his Great Bones book about the calcium flooding in the blood and how the body regulates the level and passes the excess calcium through kidneys and excess passes out in urine. He states this is all due to loss of estrogen in post menopausal women. When I read that paragraph, I said this is me! Only time will tell when I have various bloodwork and urine tests when I go in early April which is 6 months after my Reclast infusion.

I was on Forteo for 6 months. I had no side effects except for injection site reaction, however, because my 24 hour urine for calcium was elevated prior to taking it, it just continued to get higher and higher and would get kidney stones if I didn't stop it. 3 months into taking Forteo, my P1NP went up to 250 from 68! It's too bad I had to get off this drug. I followed up with an infusion of Reclast and of course I experienced flu like symptoms but was relieved when taking Tylenol every 6 hours for 36 hours. Took a few days to be back to myself. Just started taking transdermal bioidentical hrt and progesterone for one week and will be going for bloodwork in 6 weeks to see my estradiol level since loss of estrogen was my main cause of osteoporosis and secondary cause is having hypercalcuria. My 2nd endocrinologist prescribed a low dose of chlorthalidone back in December and I have follow up bloodwork including my CTX. I also consult with Dr. Keith McCormick, and he said by taking transdermal hrt, it will help my CTX as well as my hypercalcuria and that I wouldn't need to be on chlorthalidone. He states this fact in his Great Bones book about the calcium flooding in the blood and how the body regulates the level and passes the excess calcium through kidneys and excess passes out in urine. He states this is all due to loss of estrogen in post menopausal women. When I read that paragraph, I said this is me! Only time will tell when I have various bloodwork and urine tests when I go in early April which is 6 months after my Reclast infusion.

@doglover1962
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/critically-speaking/id1463016517?i=1000676606414
Good morning. Yesterday I came across this podcast with Dr Keith McCormick and found it extremely informative. As it turns out, I was supposed to go for a DEXA scan today and after hearing him mention the add on test called Trabecular Bone Score which is helpful in assessing bone quality, (not just density) I called my doc to ask if we could add it on and she had never heard of it, but since I checked my Medicare Advantage Plan with United Healthcare and they cover it- I found a facility about 60 miles from my home that performs it and cancelled my DEXA for today and will reschedule at the other facility. I already had his book “The Whole-Body Approach to Osteoporosis “ which I hadn’t read yet and started reading last night. (Highly recommend!) On my last Bone density scan 2 years ago I was just a hair away from Osteoporosis. I am 71 now and have always been an active gal-walk 3-6 miles a day etc but I have degenerative disc disease diagnosed in 2019 plus all the unpleasant experiences of menopause (hot flashes, insomnia, vaginal atrophy etc) so I am on a mission to improve my Osteoporosis trajectory. Did you find the consult with Dr McCormick helpful and did he want to order labs? Will you continue to have follow ups with him?

Hi @mayblin
I'm using the ultra low dose of 0.025 mg in a patch. Dr. McCormick suggested I use this dose to help with my bone loss. My estradiol test was 2 before taking the patch. Hopeful that it will get to at least above 15.

Thanks for the reply @doglover1962 ! Looks like we use the same dose and dosage form. Before starting HRT, I've searched for the relationship among dose - blood level - desired bone effects. It doesn't appear that the blood level corresponds to bone effects as shown with my bone markers or dxa results, at least in my case. Hope your current regimen works well also. Please keep sharing your experiences and knowledge as you go along this journey.

All the people who prescribe but have never taken Forteo will tell you that hair loss is not a side effect. Hair loss is a common complaint from people who have taken Forteo. Hair loss wasn't signaled in clinical trials. It possibly because nutritional values were also controlled.
Forteo is very good at depleting vitamin D by putting it to good use; low vitamin D can cause hair loss.
Some have reported that the hair recovers after two years of Forteo. Others have reported that the hair dosen't recover.
I haven't experienced hair loss. I have tripled D3 intake to keep a constant serum level.
Hyperparathryoidism does cause hair loss, I think it's Forteo causing you hair loss.