Can one stop taking prolia after the first shot?

Posted by imatine @imatine, Mar 6, 2021

Hello everyone, my mom is 84 year old and she got osteoporosis since 8 years. She took prolia last October. She started to feel a lot of pain in her legs now. I am thinking she shouldn't take the 2nd shot but I am afraid of the consequences. Did anyone here stop the prolia at an early stage!? If so what happened? Thank you

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@maureenanne

Hi everyone...I had my first Prolia shot on 4/6/23 and had great results for 1st 6 days. On day 7, I woke up and was in so much pain I literally couldn't move. Had to walk with walker for several days, and couldn't leave house for over a week. The list of horrible side effects goes on from there. There is no chance I'll be getting a 2nd shot, and was very worried about the rebound effect of stopping. I did a lot of research on this, and was very happy to find that the rebound thing only starts to take effect after 2nd shot, and 12 months of treatment. It gets worse the longer you are on it. Hope this info helps anyone else who is a one and done with Prolia.

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Hi, I can personally attest to the fact the rebound effect after being on Prolia for an extended period of time. I went on Prolia in 2019 and stopped abruptly 2021 as it wasn't improving my osteoporosis and I was told by my dentist it could affect my jaw. I had no side affects from the medicine. Unfortunately no one told me the repercussions of going off this medicine cold turkey. My bad for not doing my own research but astonished my doctor who prescribed the medicine, the pharmacy or the location where I received the injection never mentioned how dangerous it would be to go off it.....

Approximately one & half years after I stopped taking Prolia I experienced 5 fractured vertebrae in the span of 6 months all due to stopping this medicine cold turkey. It was beyond painful and I had to take a leave of absence from work for that entire timeframe. After 2 successful kyphoplasty surgeries (the last one was in February 2023), I am completely on the mend and am walking 5 miles a day now. I am now in Evenity and have had 2 injections so far with zero side affects and I feel great!

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@maureenanne

Yes, I'm positive it was the Prolia. This drug peaks in your system in 7 thru 10 days. That's when the nightmare started. I know many people who have taken this for years with no problem. I have an autoimmune disease and this drug created a massive inflammatory response in my body. So, never again for me.

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I understand. I hope you are able to find a solution that will work for you.

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@mymayo2021

I had two Prolia shots six months apart and experienced devastating chronic pain from waist down after both, but especially the second shot. I stopped last year and did physical therapy for six weeks and now going to an orthopedic surgeon because I still have some pain in my hips and legs. So far so good off Prolia. In my case the cure is worse than the disease. I am walking about 3 miles 3 times a week, (I used to walk 5 miles 4 to 5 times a week before Prolia)), and I’m doing light weight bearing exercises 4 times a week. I still can not cross my legs and have some pain, but for the most part, no repercussions from stopping Prolia.

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I would like to see any feedback about condition after stopping Prolia. I had one year of Prolia and then had one year of Reclast (one infusion) which ended this March 2023. My endocrinologist is insisting that I continue with Reclast but I do not want to continue with these drugs. It is very stressful to fear that I will have the increased possibility of spinal fractures because I was on Prolia. I am hoping the year of Reclast will protect me. My dexa scan results are of high risk for fracture without impact of my left hip. This is why I decided to take the Prolia in the first place but the joint and muscle pain were intense. This is so stressful because everyone reacts differently to these drugs. I am so glad that we support each other with information. I plan to focus on Integrative medicine and only take medicine for my high blood pressure. Good luck to everyone !

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@jsmigielski

I hear the terms "vetebral" fractures", but what does that mean and has anyone experienced these when discontinuing Prolia?

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yes i had 1 shot of prolia and had avery bad reaction never took another an dhave had 2 comptression fractures that is after 1 shot

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@greyfox914

I had my first Prolia shot in August 2022 in North Carolina and am due for my second shot at the end of February 2023. I am what is termed a "snow bird" I spend summers in North Carolina and winters in Florida. Now that I am back in Florida, I am getting concerned that I cannot find a doctor in central Florida to give me a shot. I've talked with Orthopaedic doctor, Primary Care doctor and an OB/GYN. None of them can provide the shot. Now I'm wondering about the consequences of not getting another shot at all. I am very active 68 year old woman in very good health, other than being told I have osteoporosis. I don't feel any different and still can lift and move items upwards of 50 pounds without consequence. I may have been bullied by friends and a doctor in North Carolina to get the Prolia shot in the first place. Now I'm thinking from what the NC doctor said, I must continue taking the shot for the rest of my life! I'm shooting for 100 years old an that's a long time yet. Do you have any advice for me?

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@imatine @colleenyoung @greyfox914 I was strongly advised by my doctor at the time to take Prolia because I was a “fracture risk” (I was 73 at the time) - even though I had not had any fractures but had slight osteoporosis around the base of my neck - I guess she was concerned because my mother had had fractures - the last one a hip fracture that killed her (she also had Alzheimer’s at the time). I finally agreed to go on it and took my first shot in January 2019. Then I started searching for more information and came across a Facebook page on the horrors of Prolia and refused to take subsequent shots!

I was on no other bone building drugs after that, but kept mindful of bone health by taking supplements (no calcium), etc. and generally being extra careful to avoid falls.

I moved to another city in October 2022 and was without a doctor till last November. The new doctor ordered a bone scan (my former doctor had told me I was overdue for one, but I had never got around to getting another because I had moved and didn’t have a doctor here) and my scan showed 10% to 30% bone loss. Then she sent me for thoracic and spinal X-rays to check for any fractures (I felt fine!) and I had none! So she has put me on Actonel once a month.

No Prolia - and I am glad, because I too had been worried about jaw necrosis all these years! I had to have a caried molar extracted last Fall and had no complications.

If you are on Facebook, check out the Prolia page there! I just read enough to scare me off Prolia!

For me, stopping after the first dose didn't do any harm - but of course, I didn’t have severe osteoporosis nor had I experienced any bone fractures.

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@rashida

@imatine @colleenyoung @greyfox914 I was strongly advised by my doctor at the time to take Prolia because I was a “fracture risk” (I was 73 at the time) - even though I had not had any fractures but had slight osteoporosis around the base of my neck - I guess she was concerned because my mother had had fractures - the last one a hip fracture that killed her (she also had Alzheimer’s at the time). I finally agreed to go on it and took my first shot in January 2019. Then I started searching for more information and came across a Facebook page on the horrors of Prolia and refused to take subsequent shots!

I was on no other bone building drugs after that, but kept mindful of bone health by taking supplements (no calcium), etc. and generally being extra careful to avoid falls.

I moved to another city in October 2022 and was without a doctor till last November. The new doctor ordered a bone scan (my former doctor had told me I was overdue for one, but I had never got around to getting another because I had moved and didn’t have a doctor here) and my scan showed 10% to 30% bone loss. Then she sent me for thoracic and spinal X-rays to check for any fractures (I felt fine!) and I had none! So she has put me on Actonel once a month.

No Prolia - and I am glad, because I too had been worried about jaw necrosis all these years! I had to have a caried molar extracted last Fall and had no complications.

If you are on Facebook, check out the Prolia page there! I just read enough to scare me off Prolia!

For me, stopping after the first dose didn't do any harm - but of course, I didn’t have severe osteoporosis nor had I experienced any bone fractures.

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i oo had only 1 shot of prolia and had a severe reaction and that one shot changed my life forever it is a drug given out freely and the dr know very little about it. stay away please

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@proliamistake

yes i had 1 shot of prolia and had avery bad reaction never took another an dhave had 2 comptression fractures that is after 1 shot

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Ugh. Different question: do you attribute the fractures to the Prolia or to not being on Prolia. I think it's the former, but want to be sure I understand. Thanks.

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@babs10

Ugh. Different question: do you attribute the fractures to the Prolia or to not being on Prolia. I think it's the former, but want to be sure I understand. Thanks.

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definitey prolia and alot of other things

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I'm so sorry to hear that. It's discouraging.

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My mother refused to take oral osteoporosis meds because of stomach, esophagus issues in 2012. In 2022 she fell, broke several vertebrae and was in horrible pain, bedfast. Died 4 weeks later. I’m her daughter, age 77, and genetic Twinkie but worse because I had a severe milk allergy and as a child calcium supplements were unheard of. I have a hiatal hernia so pills not a great idea. I do exercise at the Y, walk on the indoor track for 30 minutes as part of the routine. A severe backache diagnosed as 3 compression fractures in 2023. Had my first Prolia shot Oct 2023. Updated Dexascan Jan 2024. Have been fairly stable since 2021 Dexascan. Attribute that to exercise and Jarrows BoneUp. Too early to see if Prolia will help. No side effects. Will have another Dexascan in a year, I will post a report with those results.
Will have my 2nd Prolia in March. I don’t think any osteoporosis med comes without warning labels.

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