Oral surgeons, who happen to see firsthand the jaw problems that bisphosphonates can cause, are being much more outspoken about the Fosamax problems than many primary care physicians. It's all well and good for doctors to tell you that osteonecrosis of the jaw is a rare side effect and not to worry about it, but perhaps they'd be singing a different tune if, like oral and facial reconstructive surgeon Dr. Gregory Lutcavage, they had to treat the patients with exposed bone and deal with the situation firsthand. Speaking about his patients with jaw necrosis, he said:
"We just try to get them comfortable again," he said. "It's going to get to the point where people will have to live with exposed bone because we don't have the treatment."
He also had some words about the drug companies and how they've handled the situation:
The whole process has been very frustrating, Lutcavage said, especially witnessing patients suffering and drug companies delaying going public about the risks and ramification ... "One drug company did not come out with the update to their circular until about three or four months ago," he said. "We were seeing this three years ago."
I applaud those doctors who have their patients' best interests at heart and are willing to tell the truth about these drugs.
Doctor warns of drug's side effects
Filed under Fosamax | Comments (1)
I've had serious trouble with Fosamax. Excruciating bone pain in my head, followed by pills for migraine (didn't resolve pain), ct scan (showed nothing) and orbital ct scan (also negative). Pain resolved in about a months time after I stopped taking Fosamax (I had taken weekly Fosamax for eight weeks.) Now, I'm having some memory loss. Could this also be related to the Fosamax treatment? The answer seems to be a very frightening yes.