With a steadily aging population, there has never been a greater focus on bone health and osteoporosis prevention. According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation(OPF), 10 million Americans currently suffer from brittle bones, with another 34 million exhibiting signs of low bone density. Women represent 80 percent of those affected, and nearly a quarter of individuals who break a hip do not survive beyond a year following their hip fracture. Given such statistics, osteoporosis prevention drugs, like Fosamax, have become increasingly popular, at the risk of potentially greater prevalence of Fosamax side effects.
Osteoporosis prevention runs the gamut from diet and exercise to drug therapy through the use of bisphosphonates such as Fosamax. And while health care professionals and regulators maintain the potential for Fosamax side effects do not outweigh the benefits, there remain some sobering statistics inherent with Fosamax and femur fractures.
Researchers at Cornell University Medical School studied the issue in 2008, and found Fosamax patients are more than 125 times more likely to sustain non-traumatic femur fractures. Reports published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, the Journal of Orthopaedic Trauma and other medical journals have variously warned that bisphosphonates (e.g. Fosamax, Actonel, Boniva, Reclast et al) produce an "increased susceptibility to, and delayed healing of, nonspinal fractures."
Other potential Fosamax side effects include Fosamax osteonecrosis of the jaw (ONJ), which is a rare but compelling disease characterized by the breaking down of jawbone tissue. Fosamax "dead jaw" is an apt description of what some Fosamax patients experience.
Patients who have found themselves victims of alleged Fosamax femur fracture or ONJ have sought legal help, and in many instances a Fosamax lawsuit has been the outcome. LawyersandSettlements.com remains an ongoing resource for legal news and information for those concerned about Fosamax side effects.
"Just as we need to be aware of the issues and impact surrounding osteoporosis and our aging population," said attorney Tim Becker, partner at Johnson Becker PLLC, "we need also to be cognizant of the role bisphosphonates like Fosamax can play in the worsening of the very condition they're prescribed to help prevent.
"As serious as osteoporosis is, especially for older women," continued Becker, "the potential side effects of a popular bone loss treatment, such as Fosamax fracture, can be just as problematic, or worse. For those patients, LawyersandSettlements.com remains a valued resource for legal help and guidance."