Fosamax can cause osteonecrosis (rotting jaw bone)

[JPace]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060412/ap_on_he_me/merck_fosamax
By THERESA AGOVINO, AP Business Writer
Wed Apr 12, 7:46 PM ET

Lawsuit Alleges Merck Negligent

Merck & Co, which is already facing a raft of cases over its pain reliever Vioxx, may need to hire additional attorneys to fight a recently filed lawsuit alleging the company was negligent in promoting its osteoporosis drug Fosamax.

According to a lawsuit filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Fort Myers, Fla., Fosamax is a defective product because it can cause osteonecrosis of the jaw, or a rotting of the jaw bone. The suit, which seeks class action status, alleges that Merck concealed and continues to hide Fosamax's potentially dangerous side effects from patients and doctors.

Fosamax is Merck's second best-selling drug with last year's revenue essentially flat at $3.2 billion.

In a statement, Merck said that in all of its clinical trials of Fosamax, which have included more than 17,000 patients, it has not had any reports of osteonecrosis of the jaw. Merck said that there have been reports of patients taking Fosamax developing the condition but that doesn't necessarily mean the drug caused it.

Fosamax belongs to a category of drugs known as nitrogenous bisphosphonates, according to the lawsuit. Some other drugs in that category are used for chemotherapy and the lawsuit says medical journals had been reporting a connection between those medicines and the jaw condition. The suit contends that since Fosamax is in the same class of drugs, Merck should have known its product could lead to such problems.

The lawsuit further alleges that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration asked Merck to add a warning to Fosamax's label in August of 2004 and that it has yet to comply with that request.

More.....http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060412/ap_on_he_me/merck_fosamax

[JPace]

1. Fosamax in chemical class with scum removing cleaners...

This is what Dr. Mercola says about Fosamax.... http://www.mercola.com/1998/archive/fosamax.htm
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Does Fosamax (Aldrenoate) Prevent Bone Loss? Two New Studies Say It Does, I Say Beware!

The drug alendronate has been reported to prevent osteoporosis in younger postmenopausal women with nearly the same effectiveness as hormone therapy. The studies were funded by Merck & Co., a Rahway, New Jersey-based pharmaceutical manufacturer.

The New England Journal of Medicine (1998;338:485-492)

Annals of Internal Medicine (1998;128:253-261, 313-314)


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Dr. Mercola's Comment:

Dr. John Lee is the physician who wrote "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About PRE Menopause" He is very strongly opposed to the use of Fosamax, and I could not agree with him more on this issue. It is interesting that Merck, the manufacturer of Fosamax, funded both of these studies and both appeared in two well respected medical journals the same week.

Fosamax is in the same chemical class (phosphonate) that is used in the cleaners used to remove soap scum from your bath tub. This is a metabolic poison that actually kills the osteoclasts. These are the cells that remove your bone so your osteoblasts can actually rebuild your bone.

It is quite clear that if you kill these cells your bone will get denser. What these studies do not show is that four years later the bone actually becomes weaker even though it is more dense.

This is because bone is a dynamic structure and requires the removal and REPLACEMENT of new bone to stay strong. Fosamax does NOT build ANY new bone. The true solution, as I have reviewed in previous newsletters, is to go on natural progesterone. One can review Dr. Lee's book for more information.

[CountAllVotes]

4. I wonder where you get "natural progesterone"

They don't say. Can you buy this at a health food store or is it something RX'd?

Hmmm.

In the meantime, no Fosemax for me. My aunt was on it for awhile and it made her quite ill so she quit taking it. She doesn't really care at the age of ~80 years.

:kick:

[Karenca]

5. health food stores and probably regular drugstores too.

i've seen it sold at large supermarkets also.

[Celebration]

6. Progesterone cream

Is sold and health food stores. It is absorbed through the skin.

[CountAllVotes]

7. oh ... I already have some of that stuff

:shrug:

:dem: :kick:

[Warpy]

9. I'm a nurse who took care of someone who had an extreme

complication from Fosamax, a ruptured esophagus. It wasn't pretty.

I'm afraid that's put me off the stuff.

I take calcium supplements and vitamin D. I'm ten years out and haven't lost any height, so it must be working.

The only people in my family with osteoporosis were the tobacco addicts.

[ShortnFiery]

2. Bummer!

As a woman who, albeit pre-menopausal who's at "super-high" risk for osteoporosis due to genetics, e.g., both my dear mother and my grandmother were *slumped over* like Quasi-moto during their twilight years, I'm significantly freaked out! :scared:

Forgive me for "taking sides" but personally, I'll opt for the Jaw Condition over "staring at my toes" (slumped over 180 degrees) for the last decade of my life. ;)

[BrklynLiberal]

3. Thank you for this post.

[JPace]

8. Another article warning about dangers of Fosamax

http://www.opednews.com/articles/genera_evelyn___060415_fosamax_does_more_ha.htm
April 15, 2006

Fosamax Does More Harm Than Good
by Evelyn Pringle

http://www.opednews.com

The osteoporosis drug Fosamax has been on the market for a little over ten years now. Drug maker Merck promoted it heavily by selling women the fear of a disabling hip fracture and the necessity of regular bone-density tests. Merck's initial TV advertising campaign featured a slim woman in her mid-40s, conveying the notion that testing was appropriate for women in this age group.

Fosamax belongs to a drug class known as bisphosphonates. Novartis's Aredia and Zometa injections are the two intravenous versions used in chemotherapy, and Merck's Fosamax and Procter and Gamble’s Actonel are the most commonly used oral versions of the drugs.

Bisphosphonate in tablet form is commonly marketed to prevent and treat osteoporosis in post-menopausal women. Stronger forms are used to manage advanced cancers that have metastasized to the bone. For cancer therapy, the drugs are given intravenously, and usually for long periods of time.
more.......http://www.opednews.com/articles/genera_evelyn___060415_fosamax_does_more_ha.htm