I took my first dose of Alendronate and then experience significant muscle pain for the next 4 days. Does anyone know if I should expect this to happen each time I take it or is it something to happen for the first few times until my body adjusts to the medicine?
It took 4 years,4 docs and losing 65 pounds before I was finally diagnosed. Be aware that in some cases, opiates can actually increase the spasms amd most importantly- bile duct procedures should only be performed by a specialist- ask the doc how many procedures (ERCP) they have done. I started out with a simple SOD type 1 and ended up with type 1 & 2 (scarring and fibrosis) from the procedure. Any doc who has put him through so many tests without considering SOD is not the right doc.
Working on the pancreas is very different that SOD. Although with SOD the bile and the pancreatic fluids can back up and it can cause pancreatic issues.
You don't want to be working with a primary doc on this issue. You should be working with someone with a large amount to experience in biliary issues and especially in SOD. It's a very specialized field, and small changes in medications can make large changes in the pressures.
In 2003 I had my gallbladder removed due to "so called" twisted duct..I was fine for several years. Then in 2006 I started with unexplained pain in my right front under my rib cage. I went to several doctors over the next years. No one could help me, I had scans and MRI's- nothing showed up. The episodes would last about 1 week and as often as every 4 weeks...I couldn't take it anymore.. I finally went to Dr.'s in the "city" and they found it..
The prescription drug Fosamax (the generic is alendronate sodium) is a medication which has been prescribed to hundreds of thousands of postmenopausal women to treat osteoporosis and help increase bone mass thereby reducing the chance of spinal or non-spinal fractures. Fosamax has also been prescribed to increase bone mass in men with osteoporosis. Brand name Fosamax is manufactured in the United States by Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc.
Do you mean Fosamax (alendronate)? If you do, its for treating bone problems like Osteoperosis by adding bone mass and slows bone loss. I use it for Osteopenia.
Do you believe that since my fibrous dysplasia has remained static / unchanged in almost 4 years that bisphosphonates would possibly be helpful to a large degree?
Also, what do you know about the risks of taking a high dose of this drug such as Fosamax?
Here's one of the articles I found:
1: J Neurosurg. 2008 Nov;109(5):889-92.
Related Articles, Links
Use of high-dose oral bisphosphonate therapy for symptomatic fibrous dysplasia of the skull.
Chao K, Katznelson L.
What kind of test(s) do they do to find out if it is SOD.... I am asking because my boyfriend is 40 years old
and he has been sick for 2.5 years and the docs can't figure out why he is so sick all the time and they
took his gallbladder out and he also had pancreatitus and has severe pain in the upper right quadreant
and is always vomiting from it and he alternates from having dirreah to constipation....
Since than I have still dealt with this horrible swishing or like that butterflies in your stomach filling, but it is where that valve is. I am told I have SOD Dysfunction. I have had many ERCP,S which resulted in pancreatitis almost every time. I went to Scott and White Hospital in Texas and was told that probably no doctor would be able to help me because the mortality rate would be 75-80%. He said the only doctor that could propably help is Dr. Lehman.
I had went to the ER one time and they told me it sounded like gallbladder. I had a HIDA scan, which came back fine. I then experienced this about 4 more times and my gen. phys. sent me to a surgeon. He did not run any tests, but said it sounded like the gallbladder needed to come out. I had it removed about 1 1/2 years ago and immediately had problems with what I felt was something "stuck" in the RUQ where the gb was removed.
Does SOD cause 'attacks' similar to gallbladder? Like maybe three or four times a month and then not for a month? I had my GB removed six months ago and have had between 15-20 'attacks' since then. Do attacks caused by SOD last from 1-4 hrs? Thanks for info. I'm still searching for solutions.
SOD can be difficult to diagnose and the only true procedure to know whether or not a condition IS SOD is via ERCP with manometry. Docs can go round and round with patients who are showing a variety of 'wierd' symptoms. Unfortunately, a lot of the patients are 'diagnosed' with acid reflux or other conditions when the LFTs don't come back as elevated. It would be nice if everyone with SOD had instantly elevated LFTs, but that doesn't always happen.
I had my gallbladder removed 4 years ago and have had nothing but problems. I have pain and discomfort everyday that radiates from my right rib cage to my back. Last year I spent a week in the hospital with gallstone pancreatitis and had to have an ERCP to remove gallstones from my bile duct. Now its June 2014 and I’m having the same symptoms. I had to visit the ER last week because of severe abdominal pain and blood tests showed elevated liver enzymes again.
Nani - I am not sure about the skin color and tailbone problems, but sometimes after gall bladder surgery people end up with Sphincter of Oddi Dysfunction which I believe is what the Biliary Dyskinesia is - it's basically a muscle that attaches to the pancreas from the small intestines that is not functioning properly and is causing a back up of bile in the common bile duct.
Do some searching online for SOD (Sphincter of Oddi Dysfunction) and you'll get a lot of information.
Since that attack I have been plagued with continuous upper abdomal discomfort, gurgling, wind and pain on both right and left side immediately under the breast. I even have shap chest pain. I wonder if I suffer from SOD and if so does anyone else have these symptoms. They often resemble symptoms of hiatus hernia, indigestion and heartburn.
These do not guarantee showing SOD, but there are two types of SOD that can be indicated by checking these levels. The only true way to DX SOD is via ERCP with manometry which should only be done by top experts in the country.
I agree with CalGal....SOD can be the beginning of a long road pain, although some have luck with medical treatment (meds) and surgery.
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