Nasal Calcium Spray ??

[Debbie C]

I went and saw my rheumy that I have here in town in case of emergencies I don't have to go to the Cleveland Clinic. But anyway he wants me to have a bone denisty test done but in the meantime he prescribed me this calcium nasal spray that you use once a day in one nostral and the next day in the other. I don't know the name of it cuz I haven't picked it up yet and don't remeber what he called it. But has anyone ever heard or done this ???? I'm not to keen on this doc anyway,he's just a stand-by !!!!

[windchime]

I would definitely have the bone density test done. Steroids and probably other meds can cause osteoporosis. At very least you should have a baseline test done. I'm not familiar with the calcium nasal spray so maybe someone else can speak to that. The bone density test is easy and takes less than 15 minutes.

[Dirty Don]

CALCITONIN SPRAY - NASAL (Fortical, Miacalcin) side effects, medical uses, and drug interactions. (http://www.medicinenet.com/calcitonin_nasal_spray/article.htm)

Try this link on calcium nasal sprays...this is just one of many brands tho.

[mishb]

I had a bone density test done as soon as I started pred, to get a base line like Cindy said.

They then follow up with them yearly.

I thought it was a must, to get it done.

Sorry, I haven't heard of a calcium nasal spray

[Debbie C]

That's it Don, I looked at the paperwork he gave me and that is what he called in to the pharmacy....THX !
I had a bone density test done about 10 yrs. ago ( pre-wg ) and showed I had osterporosis then but I eat and drink alot of things with calcium and take Vit d-3,so after ready the side effects ,I am going to wait and see what this next test shows. I don't need my nose messed up.

[renidrag]

I had bone density test at diagnosis and was told to take supplement with Calcium which I still do, Caltrate I think, with vitamin D. I haven't had another test done, perhaps because I haven't shrunk.
Dale

[annekat]

Can osteoporosis, or osteopenia, be reversed? I'm not expecting a "yes" answer, but know that the process can be slowed and maybe stopped by supplements and weight bearing exercise. I just don't know that much and maybe others know more.

[renidrag]

Slowed perhaps but not stopped. My sister has osteoporosis among other ills. When she got married in 1968 she was 5'9" and today she is 5'5" on a good day. It is horrible. Let me say she has had a lot or ailments through her life.
Dale

[annekat]

The last time I had a bone density test, I was found to have osteopenia in a part of my spine, I think in the "buffalo hump" part. This was before I knew I had Wegs or was using prednisone the way I have been for the last 3 years. Apparently the term indicates some loss of bone density, but not enough to call it osteoporosis. I started taking Fosamax after this scan and still do, or am supposed to, though I often forget. I'm not sure how I feel about it. My doc says I should take it but not for longer than 5 years and that if I get down to 5mg. pred I can quit taking it. I take Calcium and Vitamin D3 and I do get weight bearing exercise. I'm just throwing all this out there in case anyone has any response.

[Debbie C]

Well I googled that question Anne, and according to the Mayo Clinic there is medicine you can take to prevent it from getting worse and like you said certain exercises but it is not reverseable.
I got scheduled next week to get the bone denisity test done:scared: I hate to see the results after taking this pred for so long but since I have it already how much worse can it get...I'm still the same height so far !! That medicine ( nasal spray ) the doc. called in for me is not covered by my ins. and it cost 80 some dollars sssooooooooooo I'm not getting that one. Calcium tablets seem to upset my stomach so I don't take that but like I said before I "think" I get enough calcium in other ways. We will see next week.

[annekat]

Well I googled that question Anne, and according to the Mayo Clinic there is medicine you can take to prevent it from getting worse and like you said certain exercises but it is not reverseable.
I got scheduled next week to get the bone denisity test done:scared: I hate to see the results after taking this pred for so long but since I have it already how much worse can it get...I'm still the same height so far !! That medicine ( nasal spray ) the doc. called in for me is not covered by my ins. and it cost 80 some dollars sssooooooooooo I'm not getting that one. Calcium tablets seem to upset my stomach so I don't take that but like I said before I "think" I get enough calcium in other ways. We will see next week. Yeah, the medicine they were talking about is probably alendronate, known by the brand name of Fosamax, which I take. There is also Boniva. You have to be careful of these long term because of some incidence of breakage of the femur bones in the upper legs, which doesn't make sense. I know this has been discussed on the forum before, and some on here have just decided not to take it.

There has been osteoporosis in my family. My mother had a bit of a hump at age 68 when she died... we can't know how much worse it might have gotten. But she did not get the weight bearing exercise I do, or any exercise at all, and I don't know if she took supplements. I have shrunk a couple inches, which I guess most of my friends have, but I guess that is considered a sign. Deb, it's good you haven't shrunk, and if it is not in your family, and you get the exercise and stuff, then maybe you aren't at as much risk as some of us, despite your pred use. It'll be interesting to hear the results of your scan.

[mishb]

Slowed perhaps but not stopped. My sister has osteoporosis among other ills. When she got married in 1968 she was 5'9" and today she is 5'5" on a good day. It is horrible. Let me say she has had a lot or ailments through her life.
Dale

OH NO !!!
I'm not even 5 foot - I can't afford to shrink :razz:

I better get popping pills

[annekat]

OH NO !!!
I'm not even 5 foot - I can't afford to shrink :razz:

I better get popping pills Michelle, I'm probably 5'-5'1" since the shrinkage of 1.5-2" or so. Been awhile since I was measured. I've always been short, and my best friend in college was 4'9". I know many fabulous short women, and we are among them!

[pberggren1]

Of course Anne, you are Absolutely Fabulous.

[Debbie C]

I am "almost' 5'2' at least I tell everyone I am !!!

[annekat]

Thanks, Phil, and so are you, of course! (Funny thing... the word "fabulous" is not one I ever used for most of my life. When we get older, we start using different words and expressions, apparently!)

[annekat]

I am "almost' 5'2' at least I tell everyone I am !!! I always told everyone I was 5'3", but I was really only 5' 2.75" according to a doctor's office measurement. So, Deb, you are another one of us fabulous short women!

[Debbie C]

Let's hope I don't turn into "The Incredible Shrinking Woman"...I think that was the name of an old movie !

[mishb]

I always say that I am 4'11'' and a half.
You know that half makes all the difference :flapper:

[LillysMom]

My first bone density showed osteopenia in hips and back. After several years on Actenol and then Fosomax, with bone density tests every two years, both hips and back returned to within normal range. Then dr stopped medication because bones can get brittle if meds are taken after bones return to within normal range. I now have screening every 2 years and will take medication again if needed. Even though I don't have WG, I do know osteopenia can be reversed to some degree in some people. Also, disc degeneration over time and age can make a person 'shrink,' and not necessarily back bone degeneration. As y'all said, osteoporosis can probably, at best, just be kept from getting worse. Please take meds seriously and TAKE them. The meds really work, so don't take them lightly. And I realize the steroids give everyone who takes them an extra challenge, so the sooner you take them after diagnosis the better. That's my experience anyway, with being almost 70 and having a daughter with WG. Thanks for listening.
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[annekat]

Thanks for that, Lilly. I obviously need to get another bone density test and see what the current status of my osteopenia is and if the Fosamax has made a difference. One person on here claimed that with calcium and vitamin D3 supplements and weight bearing exercise, but no Fosamax, she was able to see an improvement in her bone density test. She said that Fosamax makes bad quality bone. That is just one of the negative things said about it on here, but I know there are people on here who take it. I'm not forming an opinion either way and will try to do better about remembering to take it, until such time as someone convinces me I should stop. My doc says after 5 years, and by the time I get to 5mg. pred it will be about 5 years. But the bone density test seems very important at this point.

[pberggren1]

I was surprised that my test a few months back came back normal so my doc said I didn't have to go on the bone loss drug.....:thumbsup:

[Alysia]

I was surprised that my test a few months back came back normal so my doc said I didn't have to go on the bone loss drug.....:thumbsup:

not surprising at all, after all, you are talking about Batman :wink1:

[D.B.]

I am wondering what the benefit is to nasal absorption. i have a hard time swallowing big pills, but also fearful to introduce anything to my nose. i.take fosamax now but worry about long term effects. just another dilema due to prednisone. how to maximize positive benefits of drugs versus their dangerous side effects.

[gilders]

Nasal issues is probably the most common issue with WG so I would love to know if this calcium spray is fine for use with us all. I was first prescribed Calcium +Vit D tablets about 15 years ago. They're very chalky, large and must be chewed or sucked before swallowed. I really didn't mind them for the first 10 years, but now I really struggle with them. They stick to your teeth and really make me feel sick for a short while. It's the only meds that I occasionally miss. I know it's ridiculous of me and if I break a bone I'll realise how stupid I've been missing a tablet due to them not tasting nice, but I really struggle with them now.
I had never heard of a calcium nasal spray and would much prefer this.

[Debbie C]

They have flavored chewable calcium tablets that might be better than those huge nasty tasting ones. I cancelled the test, I will reschedule when I come back from Fl.,maybe the sun will make my bones better !!!

[Pete]

Be sure to bring back warm weather!! :wink1:

[windchime]

Nasal issues is probably the most common issue with WG so I would love to know if this calcium spray is fine for use with us all. I was first prescribed Calcium +Vit D tablets about 15 years ago. They're very chalky, large and must be chewed or sucked before swallowed. I really didn't mind them for the first 10 years, but now I really struggle with them. They stick to your teeth and really make me feel sick for a short while. It's the only meds that I occasionally miss. I know it's ridiculous of me and if I break a bone I'll realise how stupid I've been missing a tablet due to them not tasting nice, but I really struggle with them now.
I had never heard of a calcium nasal spray and would much prefer this.

I think they come in a gummy chew also. Check with your pharmacy. You might tolerate that one better.

[annekat]

Heck, I just swallow a couple of 1000mg. calcium tablets and I don't think it says on the label to chew them. They have magnesium and zinc in them, too. And then I take a 2000mg. Vit D3 gel tablet at the same time. Didn't know anything about chewing any of them.

[drz]

The last time I had a bone density test, I was found to have osteopenia in a part of my spine, I think in the "buffalo hump" part. This was before I knew I had Wegs or was using prednisone the way I have been for the last 3 years. Apparently the term indicates some loss of bone density, but not enough to call it osteoporosis. I started taking Fosamax after this scan and still do, or am supposed to, though I often forget. I'm not sure how I feel about it. My doc says I should take it but not for longer than 5 years and that if I get down to 5mg. pred I can quit taking it. I take Calcium and Vitamin D3 and I do get weight bearing exercise. I'm just throwing all this out there in case anyone has any response.

I have also been on generic Fosomax for over three years and will take another bone density x ray this week to see if I can safely stop it. I have read that after it a few years it can make your bones more brittle which sort defeats the purpose of taking it.

[annekat]

I have also been on generic Fosomax for over three years and will take another bone density x ray this week to see if I can safely stop it. I have read that after it a few years it can make your bones more brittle which sort defeats the purpose of taking it. I have heard similar things, drz. I'm not even sure when I started taking it. I think I might follow my doc's advice to stop once I reach 5mg. pred.

[Pete]

I have heard similar things, drz. I'm not even sure when I started taking it. I think I might follow my doc's advice to stop once I reach 5mg. pred.

If you're below 10 mg pred, you may want to ask if you can stop fosamax now since your body "normally" produces about 10 mg/day of corticosterone (natural pred).

[windchime]

Heck, I just swallow a couple of 1000mg. calcium tablets and I don't think it says on the label to chew them. They have magnesium and zinc in them, too. And then I take a 2000mg. Vit D3 gel tablet at the same time. Didn't know anything about chewing any of them.

Anne there are different types, chewable and not so chewable. I think you have the not so chewable. It will say on the bottle.

[annekat]

Anne there are different types, chewable and not so chewable. I think you have the not so chewable. It will say on the bottle. It's the not chewable. I don't even remember ever seeing the chewable, but I'll look. It seemed like the implication was that the chewable was somehow better. Otherwise, why would people keep using the chewable if it tastes bad or is a problem for them? The gummy versions I can understand. But why chewable in the first place? What is the benefit? My non-chewables are not huge and are not hard to swallow. Maybe some people have a harder time swallowing pills than others.

[annekat]

If you're below 10 mg pred, you may want to ask if you can stop fosamax now since your body "normally" produces about 10 mg/day of corticosterone (natural pred). Pete, I have been taking Fosamax for at least a couple of years before dx and the starting of pred. That is because I was tested as having osteopenia. This probably runs in my family, as my mother had a bit of a hump. When my WG doc talks about it he acts like he was the one who prescribed it and I have to remind him that it was my PA, some time earlier, which he promptly forgets. He says 5 years or if down to 5mg. of pred. As a matter of fact, I've gotten lazy about taking it and the doses get spread out more than they should. I think don't feel too bad about it because of the negative things I've heard. I'll talk to my PA about it when I see her but will probably end up doing as I please, which may well be quitting it altogether. I do take Calcium and D3 and get weight bearing exercise, which my mother did not.

[drz]

I take Tums or generic equivalent as one of my forms of calcium and they are flavored to taste good and are chewed. The other form of calcium citrate is intended to be swallowed whole I believe and does not need to be taken with food to be absorbed well.