Fosamax and hair loss

I am a 72 year old white female who has been on Fosamax over 5 years for osteoporosis which runs in my family. In December, I had severe discomfort in the thigh area of my right leg. X-rays ordered by my GP showed nothing. Sent me to orthopedic surgeon whose x-rays also showed nothing. He ordered bone dye test which showed stress fractures of BOTH femurs. No one, NOT EVEN THE ORTHOPEDIC SURGEON, could figure out how it happened since I had not fallen or had other trauma. When I began to do my own research, I found answers to other problems I had been experiencing, for which no one had answers.....bone and muscle pain, hair loss, depression. I realize doctors are overwhelmed with info but I am especially disappointed in the orth. surgeon who should have known this was a possibility since the study came out in The Orthopedic Journal. As I continued my research, I find that women have been experiencing these side effects for years. I was previously very active and a dedicated walker, but this has robbed me of my confidence since I fear breaking other bones. The femur is the largest and strongest bone in the body and if I broke both of those with no trauma, what else could happen? I want to get the word out to women but am not sure the best vehicle for that. Any suggestions? There are Fosamax lawyers anxious to jump on this but I am more interested in spreading the word, not litigation, however I think there are possibly many unreported cases of the Fosamax side effects just because people don't know where to turn.

Started Fosamax February, 2006. By April 2006 I had hip, back and foot pain. Hair loss became very apparent. I checked this site and saw hair loss as a side effect. I had never realized this before - these sites are a big help. Before Fosamax I had been on Actonel for a year (no pain, but mild hair loss) but was told to switch to Fosamax by my insurance company). Stopped taking Fosamax in April 2006. Pain slowly subsided but left foot was still so swollen by July 2006 that I saw a podiatrist for suggestions to ease discomfort. She suggested metatarsal pads until swelling and pain subsided (about another month). Seem to have no lasting side effects by January 2007. Will never take Fosamax again.

I started taking Fosamax in January, 2006. Have always had very thick, healthy hair and have noticed a marked thinning of my hair in this short time. Has anybody had the same symptoms and have they changed to another medication or treatment that does not promote hair loss? Thank you.

I've read about hair loss here, but what about changing the hair texture? Since taking Fosamax my hair "health" has deteriorated. Any suggestions?

Michelle

MY MOTHER USED THIS DRUG FOR OSTEOPROSIS AND SHE TOLD ME THAT SHE FEELS BURNING SENSATION ON SKIN OF HEAD AND SHE BEGIN TO HAIR LOSS AND PALPITATION .

I have been taking Fosamax for about 3 years,once a week. I had extreme hair loss last year. I was very concerned. It seems to have diminished now. I have knee pain. Some days are worse than others. I just recently started having shoulder pain. I exercise at least 3 times a week and have been for years so I know these pains are not from that. I needed to have some dental work done and found out some extremely disturbing news that doctors are just now finding out about. If a person is having any sort of dental work that has to do with the jaw bone, this includes tooth extraction, you are at risk for bone loss in the form of necrosis. This means the bone tissue dies and there is no cure for it. It makes no difference how healthy a person is or how long you have taken Fosamax. A person only need take 1 pill and they are at risk. There is no way to determine who will suffer from this terrible side affect. Stopping Fosamax before dental surgery makes no difference. Some people have lost their whole jaw. This is devastating news that needs national attention. My oral surgeon told me that doctors have tried everything to stop the necrosis and nothing has worked. Be forewarned.

After three years on this drug I have had a lot of hair loss and terrible numbness in my toes. The numbness was toward the end of the day when I would sit down. Until I began to read what others have had to say on this web site about numbness of the feet and hair loss I had no idea that Fosamax was the cause. I did not experience these symptoms until I had been on the drug for a couple of years. My homeopath told me to read about the side effects of Fosamax on the web and that is how I found this web site.