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One year on Fosamax enough??
I don't know if anyone has experience with this. I just finished two years on an anabolic (Tymlos), and now have to have a bisphosphonate (I chose Fosamax) to "lock in the gains" -- and, I guess, see more increase in bone density. I really don't want to be on Fosamax for more than a year, but my endocrinologist is pushing for two years because, she said, there won't be enough improvement. And so, she won't order a DEXA at the one-year mark. I had wanted a DEXA to track how my body is responding to the medication. Has anyone seen improvement with Fosamax in just one year? Or gotten a DEXA to assess medication response?
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I wonder if you could arrange a DEXA scan without a prescription? Not sure if a doctor's order is required for the test but it probably is for insurance coverage. It sounds like have a DEXA scan after one year would be a good idea. I just don't understand why some of these doctors don't seem to be on the side of the patient.
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2 ReactionsMy experience is with alendronate after a successful year of evenity. After 1 year of alendronate following evenity course I continued with great gains in both spine (baseline -3.1 to -2.0 to -1.6 to -2.3) and hip (baseline -3.3 to -3.0 to -2.8 to -3.0) but then after year 2 of alendronate lost nearly half of those gains that alendronate was supposed to lock-in. Had I not insisted on a yearly DXA I probably would have continued the alendronate not knowing it wasn’t working anymore. So I’m a huge proponent on annual DXAs!!
I’m now on a second year of Evenity and probably will use Reclast to lock in but will always insist on annual DXA.
No fractures and had successful bunion correction surgery and continue with lots of exercise and weight training. Another DXA in October 2026.
I would also like to try some type of HRT but cannot get any doc to put me on it despite zero calcium cardiac score……….
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3 Reactions@sebutler There are other tests than DEXA aka DXA that you can do, especially REMS.
One advantage of both of these is that they give a different perspective so are good addition to DEXA scans.
You can search in the mayoclinic connect box above to see extensive discussions of REMS and Bone Turnover Markers (BTMs). Here is just one link to a post of mine as an example:
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/vibration-plate-therapy-for-increasing-bone-density/
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1 Reaction@kfhoz Thank you so much. I'm going to investigate getting a REMS scan.
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1 Reaction@hikernurse Thank you a million for sharing your experience. I'm going to have to talk with my doc some more about all this. I also have had no fractures to date and have a zero calcium score. So maybe HRT would be an option. I once asked her about that before, but she said I'd have to ask my PCP -- which was weird, since she herself is an endocrinologist!!
So I take Levothyroxine and now on fosomax both say take first thing so which come first?
@alto22 You have to be upright after taking alendronate. So when I was on it I kept water and my levothyroxine by my bed and would take the levothyroxine anytime I woke up after about 5am, but I stayed in bed for at least 30 minutes. Later when I actually got up then I took the alendronate and stayed upright.
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1 Reactionalto22, it's hard enough to wait breakfast, coffee or tea for 30 minutes to an hour and a half after waking.
I've heard that you should take the levothyroxine first because alendronate can interfere with absorption of levothyroxine. You could take levothyroxine at night but you shouldn't eat for four hours before. Khfoz has the best advice.