Eenie Meenie Minee Moe...

eenie, send us your numbers (if you want to). I think right off the bat that Forteo is your best bet. Fewer side ef
fects expecially for those with autoimmune systems. If you hips are the worst or very low, I'd bet on Tymlos.
If it makes you hollar you can let it go and try something else.
What does your doctor say?

You're hilarious; Thanks for the humor.
I got the results from MyChart & assume the doctor hasn't even seen it yet.
You're the first to know besides myself!
Bmd Change
Skeletal Site BMD(g/cm2) T-score Z-score Prior Baseline
PA Spine/L1-L4 0.855 -1.7 0.4 -0.001 (-0%) -0.001 (-0%)
Left Hip/Total Hip 0.622 -2.6 -1.1 -0.012 (-2%) -0.012 (-2%)
Left Hip/Femoral Neck 0.530 -2.9 -1.0 -0.060 (-10%) -0.060 (-10%)

(* = significant change)

Interpretation: Based on WHO criteria, this patient has osteoporosis.

A FRAX(r) score is not provided because the patient is not osteopenic.

Measurement of the PA spine was marginal due to significant scoliosis,
degenerative changes.

joybo99,
you're the hilarious one.
Because your left femoral neck is the low mark at -2.9 while total hip is -2.6 I would still chose Forteo. The nursery rhyme made me laugh because it describes the choice aptly. My mother told me to choose the very best one and that means Forteo. Because your left femoral neck is the low mark at -2.9 and your total hip is -2.6. your long bone must be -2.3. So we know that we're in the most trouble with the trabecular bone. which says something about your unmeasured spine. Forteo is a little better in the spine. Tymlos in the hip.
They are both marvelous drugs.
There are basically three classes of medications for osteoporosis
antiresorptives Reclast, Fosamax, risedronate
monoclonal antibodies Evenity, Prolia
and anabolics Tymlos and Forteo
Our natural process of bone renewal is for osteoclasts to clear out bone that is more fragile--aged or fissured and for osteoblasts replace that old bone with new bone. These cells work in units.
Until 2003, the only way we had to stop bone loss was to stop the osteoclasts which stopped the osteoblasts. It works so much better than nothing.
Forteo and then Tymlos gave us an opportunity for better bone by increasing the osteoblast and the osteoclasts increasing the number of cell units, clearing out the brittle bone before replacing it with integrated flexible bone.
Later still Amgen gave us Prolia and Evenity. These drugs, valuable in some situations, increase the cells that build bone and greatly decreasing the cell that dissolve older bone. They build bone fast, but build it over bone that is weakened with time and abuse.
I hope some opposing views follow. But the first impression is
Bless your choice. More later, if you like.

Thank you for all this great info! My doctor has prescribed Fosamax for me. Im 72. T scores are as follows: lumbar spine -1.4, L. hip is -2.2, L. Femoral neck is -1.6, R hip -1.8, R femoral neck -2.1, L radius -2.8.
I really didn’t want to start Fosamax but trying to juggle all other supplements to increase my bone density seems to be too confusing. Unsure of which ones to try and what if they don’t do anything? I’m thinking I have a better chance of increasing my bone density by being on Fosamax but I’m skeptical on what my doctor would order for me after that.

I have an autoimmune disorder and I take Forteo. Some minor side effects, but overall success.

@joybo99 and @gently and @busylady I AM very surprised that your doctor put you on Fosamax right away, especially with the T-Scores you provided. Have you fractured? Is that why your doctor wants to put you on medication? Some OP experts I have listened to (especially Dr Keith McCormick), do not put their patients on meds until they are -3.5 or worse, and they have 20% or more fracture risk, or they have had a fracture. Have either of you seen an endocrinologist or an Osteoporosis specialist? I would get a second opinion before starting on Fosamax or for that matter on any Osteoporosis medication without doing baseline testing. Your doctor should at least do a base line test of your CTX levels especially if starting on Fosamax, and check it again in a few months to check if that medication is working instead of waiting 1-2 years to get a DEXA scan. Good luck!

busylady, you have really good bones. You are probably taking all the right supplements already. Do you know why they imaged the left radius. I'm curious because the radius is usually measured as a stand in when they can measure other parts of the spine.
It is a common area of fracture, even when osteoporosis isn't evidenced in other areas of bone. I think you must be getting excellent care. Compliments to your doctor.
You'll have a better chance of increasing bone density by adding Fosamax. You'll probably be on it for 3 to 5 years. It can be followed by any of the medication available for osteoporosis.
You might ask your doctor to order bone markers--CTX and P1NP before you start Fosamax and then after two months. At least the CTX to make sure Fosamax is working.
You might also ask about Forteo, which would be more effective than Fosamax. And is generally given before Fosamax these days. And wouldn't get mixed up with your supplements.
I started Forteo at 72 and so like the drug. No one measured my radius, though.
More directly you could be offered Reclast--and injectable drug similar to Fosamax, Prolia or Evenity (the ones I would avoid), Forteo or Tymlos.

I've just joined this Group. The info exchange is great - and detailed. I have severe osteoporosis...... Now, I have a question: while the info exchange is fascinating, do I assume we are all nonmedical people entering this conversation? If an orthopaedic specialist talks, are they identified as a specialist as compared with the rest of us nonmedics? I ask this because there is a difference between discussion among well informed patients and a stated medical opinion. If the conversation remains between well informed nonmedics, what is the goal: to give us new questions to ask our specialists at the next appointment? Or is the goal to catch the attention of medical specialists and for them to respond to us?

hi narta, we are patients, sometimes tossing around the ideas that doctors have given us, that we've read, or some idea that makes sense to us. Most valuable is when members tell us their personal experiences. It isn't a way to catch the eye of a medical specialist. Opinions and experiences differ widely.
Your assumptions are correct.
No one is pressured to reveal anything they aren't comfortable with and each person's expression is respected. Welcome.

Gently, sums it up exactly! In my experience, very little information is provided by the medical professionals that I've seen (and I've seen the 4 that treat osteoporosis). Doctors have A LOT of patients; usually a lot to cover in your 10–15-minute appointment about chronic disease; and that is when you know what questions to ask! This forum has provided excellent information about the various ways to treat osteoporosis that my doctor didn't tell me about. All the doctors treat osteoporosis in various ways; there are different classis of drugs, supplements, weight training ideas, etc. I got none of that through the doc; got it all through this site. I started with Fosamax; after 4 months of fear I went with docs prescription of Reclast. Found out how to prep for that (a LOT of hydration and regular Tylenol for a couple of days) only from this website...and I am continuing to discover what worked for some and not for others which is more helpful than any doctor visit!