1. < Osteoporosis & Bone Health

Do Prolia injections affect the kidneys?

Posted by spiritbird2 @spiritbird2, Mar 30, 2016

I have been on Prolia injections for 2 years now. My kidneys were being effected by a lowering of GFR to 45. I am now on a years vacation from Prolia and GFR has increased to 50. My doctor said Prolia does not effect the kidneys. So now I am confused.

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trinity | @trinity | Apr 10, 2020
In reply to @cares "I have been on Prolia for about 8 years. About a year ago I developed kidney..." + (show)
@cares

I have been on Prolia for about 8 years. About a year ago I developed kidney disease picked up on routine visit and blood work done at the hematology/ oncology office I have been going to and where I received Prolia. My creatinine was 3, BUN was 50 and GFR 17. I was sent to a nephrologist and no one could tell me what caused the dramatic increase in my numbers. Prior my creatinine had been 1.4-1.6 labeled as insufficient kidney function minor now I am told I have stage 3-4 kidney disease. I have done a lot of research as I am someone who needs answers and yes kidney disease is not listed as a side effect of Prolia HOWEVER there are studies that show Prolia can cause a SIGNIFICANT increase in PTH levels ,,,, and high PTH over time can cause kidney disease !, PTH is not commonly tested nor was it at my hematologist, The kidney doctor does it as part of his standard panel and when it was over 900 thought that it was lab error but it came back high on the repeated test as well . My own research led me to Prolia as a reason for the PTH and in the 6 months it decreased to 190 I did not take one again until I have more information. If this has been happening every 6 mos for 8 years I have to wonder if this was the cause of my sudden decline in kidney function .............

If anyone has had any similar issue please respond,! It is not a link easily made took a lot of looking at different research and articles I do believe this is something that should be mentioned in the Prolia literature but is not !!!!

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Hi cares, prior to my first Prolia injection, my GFR was 83.5.....Now 6 months later my GFR IS 71.5.....Mt PTH were 101.4 and 88.4..I have had VITAMIN D megadoses too as my D WAS very low and symptomatic...Curious to how low my next GFR will be in Sept.....I MAY NOT RECEIVE ANYMORE PROLIA OF MY OWN VOLITION, but the elevated PTH IS OF GREAT CONCERN TOO... No one seems to make a correlation to decrease in GFR AND PROLIA....I am just a retired director of nursing....My osteoporosis is moderate to severe.... I think more studies are needed...Our health is suffering here

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1 reply
Mentor
Teresa, Volunteer Mentor | @hopeful33250 | Apr 10, 2020
In reply to @trinity "Hi cares, prior to my first Prolia injection, my GFR was 83.5.....Now 6 months later my..." + (show)
@trinity

Hi cares, prior to my first Prolia injection, my GFR was 83.5.....Now 6 months later my GFR IS 71.5.....Mt PTH were 101.4 and 88.4..I have had VITAMIN D megadoses too as my D WAS very low and symptomatic...Curious to how low my next GFR will be in Sept.....I MAY NOT RECEIVE ANYMORE PROLIA OF MY OWN VOLITION, but the elevated PTH IS OF GREAT CONCERN TOO... No one seems to make a correlation to decrease in GFR AND PROLIA....I am just a retired director of nursing....My osteoporosis is moderate to severe.... I think more studies are needed...Our health is suffering here

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Hello @trinity and welcome to Mayo Connect.

I appreciate you sharing your experience with Prolia injections. I can understand your concern with the increase of PTH since the injection. Was your PTH elevated prior to beginning the Prolia treatment? Do you recall what your calcium score was? (PTH and calcium levels are usually taken at the same time).

I also have bone loss, elevated PTH and low levels of D. It all seems to work together.

You mention taking mega doses of Vitamin D. Is this the prescription strength Vitamin D or supplements that you take?

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1 reply
Mentor
Teresa, Volunteer Mentor | @hopeful33250 | Apr 10, 2020
In reply to @bonnieh218 "@cares I have no experience with Prolia. I do have stage 3 kidney disease (I believe..." + (show)
@bonnieh218

@cares I have no experience with Prolia. I do have stage 3 kidney disease (I believe from taking NSAID) so have to watch what meds I am taking. I’m not dealing with liver issues from Tylenol.
I had some bad side effects from a med that were not listed in their literature. My doctor told me I could report my side effects to the FDA and help to get them included in that med literature. If you’d like to do that you can report online here: http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/report.htm or you can call 1-800-332-1088. It’s a small thing but if everyone did that, those small things might result in big changes. Just a thought. Have a great day.

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Hello @bonnieh218,

I appreciate your sharing information about reporting side-effects of the Prolia treatment. It is a small thing, but if everyone did so, it might make a difference.

Do you mind sharing what med you were taking that caused the side-effects that were not listed in the literature?

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bonnieh218 | @bonnieh218 | Apr 10, 2020

Hopeful33250 I was taking Omeprazole and my doctor said that the side effects I was having couldn’t be from the Omeprazole because the things I was experiencing were not listed as side effects in the Omeprazole literature.

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1 reply
trinity | @trinity | Apr 10, 2020
In reply to @hopeful33250 "Hello @trinity and welcome to Mayo Connect. I appreciate you sharing your experience with Prolia injections...." + (show)
@hopeful33250

Hello @trinity and welcome to Mayo Connect.

I appreciate you sharing your experience with Prolia injections. I can understand your concern with the increase of PTH since the injection. Was your PTH elevated prior to beginning the Prolia treatment? Do you recall what your calcium score was? (PTH and calcium levels are usually taken at the same time).

I also have bone loss, elevated PTH and low levels of D. It all seems to work together.

You mention taking mega doses of Vitamin D. Is this the prescription strength Vitamin D or supplements that you take?

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Yes, my PTH WAS ELEVATED prior to my first injection and D was very low, calcium was normal....I assumed my parathyroid was producing more in compensation...Yes, prescription strength D3...Also at that time my GFR WAS 83.5....Six months later calcium still normal, PTH STILL HIGH and GFR dropped 12 points...I am concerned about my kidney function....Every other lab is nprmal...I think prolia may be the culprit for the decrease in GFR....As for the parathyroid I am stumped...Rheumatologist plans on checking PTH AND GFR IN A FEW WEEKS. IF my results are not favorable, I may not continue with Prolia...As for the elevated PTH, TUMOR??I think more tests are needed..The b vitamin D deficiency has been ongoing...When you live in the armpit of PA where the sun doesn't shine, lol..

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2 replies
Mentor
Teresa, Volunteer Mentor | @hopeful33250 | Apr 10, 2020
In reply to @trinity "Yes, my PTH WAS ELEVATED prior to my first injection and D was very low, calcium..." + (show)
@trinity

Yes, my PTH WAS ELEVATED prior to my first injection and D was very low, calcium was normal....I assumed my parathyroid was producing more in compensation...Yes, prescription strength D3...Also at that time my GFR WAS 83.5....Six months later calcium still normal, PTH STILL HIGH and GFR dropped 12 points...I am concerned about my kidney function....Every other lab is nprmal...I think prolia may be the culprit for the decrease in GFR....As for the parathyroid I am stumped...Rheumatologist plans on checking PTH AND GFR IN A FEW WEEKS. IF my results are not favorable, I may not continue with Prolia...As for the elevated PTH, TUMOR??I think more tests are needed..The b vitamin D deficiency has been ongoing...When you live in the armpit of PA where the sun doesn't shine, lol..

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I understand, @trinity. I live in Michigan, also a place with little sun! I find it interesting that you also have a high PTH but normal calcium level, much like me. Have you had the nuclear scan of the Parathyroid to look for adenomas? I recently had it and it appeared normal.

If you don't mind sharing more, how low is/was your D level? Mine was at 17 for a long time. When I increased the supplements to 4,000 (take in two doses, morning and night) it finally got up to 30. My endocrinologist said that taking two separate doses was probably better than taking it all in one dose.

I appreciate your sharing your journey with this problem!

REPLY
1 reply
Mentor
Teresa, Volunteer Mentor | @hopeful33250 | Apr 10, 2020
In reply to @bonnieh218 "Hopeful33250 I was taking Omeprazole and my doctor said that the side effects I was having..." + (show)
@bonnieh218

Hopeful33250 I was taking Omeprazole and my doctor said that the side effects I was having couldn’t be from the Omeprazole because the things I was experiencing were not listed as side effects in the Omeprazole literature.

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Thanks for the additional information, @bonnieh218. Omeprazole can also cause bone loss, but you are probably familiar with that?

REPLY
trinity | @trinity | Apr 16, 2020
In reply to @hopeful33250 "I understand, @trinity. I live in Michigan, also a place with little sun! I find it..." + (show)
@hopeful33250

I understand, @trinity. I live in Michigan, also a place with little sun! I find it interesting that you also have a high PTH but normal calcium level, much like me. Have you had the nuclear scan of the Parathyroid to look for adenomas? I recently had it and it appeared normal.

If you don't mind sharing more, how low is/was your D level? Mine was at 17 for a long time. When I increased the supplements to 4,000 (take in two doses, morning and night) it finally got up to 30. My endocrinologist said that taking two separate doses was probably better than taking it all in one dose.

I appreciate your sharing your journey with this problem!

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Prior to my first Prolia injection my D was 9....This has been an ongoing problem for me....I take the prescribed megadoses followed by maintenance recommendations.....I had a surgical menopause at age 29.... My osteoporosis is severe. My rheumatologist plans to recheck my PTH and GFR in a few weeks....He says not to worry...I was the one who had to bring his attention to the significant decrease in the glomerular filtration rate...I have not been to an endocrinologist yet, but pending my recheck, I will request a referral....I have no idea how long my PTH has been elevated; I know only for the last year and a half by virtue of testing.....NOTHING in my lifestyle has changed...I take an ACE INHIBITOR, plus my maintenance dose ov D3 and calcium petites.. I FEEL IT IS PROLIA....I will not sacrifice my kidneys....I am ambulatory and will continue to walk daily as always...I will post more when I have more facts...We all must remain healthy and informed...

REPLY
2 replies
JK | @contentandwell | Apr 16, 2020
In reply to @trinity "Prior to my first Prolia injection my D was 9....This has been an ongoing problem for..." + (show)
@trinity

Prior to my first Prolia injection my D was 9....This has been an ongoing problem for me....I take the prescribed megadoses followed by maintenance recommendations.....I had a surgical menopause at age 29.... My osteoporosis is severe. My rheumatologist plans to recheck my PTH and GFR in a few weeks....He says not to worry...I was the one who had to bring his attention to the significant decrease in the glomerular filtration rate...I have not been to an endocrinologist yet, but pending my recheck, I will request a referral....I have no idea how long my PTH has been elevated; I know only for the last year and a half by virtue of testing.....NOTHING in my lifestyle has changed...I take an ACE INHIBITOR, plus my maintenance dose ov D3 and calcium petites.. I FEEL IT IS PROLIA....I will not sacrifice my kidneys....I am ambulatory and will continue to walk daily as always...I will post more when I have more facts...We all must remain healthy and informed...

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@trinity. The information in your post is far beyond my knowledge but I plan to research this to learn more and understand better. I just know that my DEXA numbers were in the osteoporosis range and my doctors - PCP and endocrinologist - both advise me to go on a medication. Both of them seem to favor Reclast.
JK

REPLY
pattitoo | @pattitoo | Apr 17, 2020
In reply to @trinity "Prior to my first Prolia injection my D was 9....This has been an ongoing problem for..." + (show)
@trinity

Prior to my first Prolia injection my D was 9....This has been an ongoing problem for me....I take the prescribed megadoses followed by maintenance recommendations.....I had a surgical menopause at age 29.... My osteoporosis is severe. My rheumatologist plans to recheck my PTH and GFR in a few weeks....He says not to worry...I was the one who had to bring his attention to the significant decrease in the glomerular filtration rate...I have not been to an endocrinologist yet, but pending my recheck, I will request a referral....I have no idea how long my PTH has been elevated; I know only for the last year and a half by virtue of testing.....NOTHING in my lifestyle has changed...I take an ACE INHIBITOR, plus my maintenance dose ov D3 and calcium petites.. I FEEL IT IS PROLIA....I will not sacrifice my kidneys....I am ambulatory and will continue to walk daily as always...I will post more when I have more facts...We all must remain healthy and informed...

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Thank you for your post, I am not familiar at all with PTH and GER. I am on Generic Fosamax year 2 and like you I had a surgical menopause a bit older than you. I checked with two Orthopods and my GP before starting my " bone med" - plan on a bone scan after the Corona virus settles down for getting tests. Thanks again.

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