Fosamax, a bisphosphonates, is now linked to the death of jaw bone tissue. Two other Bisphosphonates are more likely to cause this tissue death: Zometa and Aredia.

Fosamax, Actonel, and Boniva are used to treat osteoporosis, but also raise the risk of jaw necrosis.

Bisphosphonate drugs block the normal ``turnover" of bone cells. Because bone is not turning over, infections in the mouth (which is loaded with bacteria), may not heal properly, further damaging the jaw.

According to the May Annals of Internal Medicine, researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital linked jaw necrosis to bisphosphonates.

Patients are suing Merck & Co., the maker of Fosamax. But the company on its website noted that as of March 2006, jaw necrosis probably occurs in less than one in every 100,000 patient-treatment years. Last year, the US Food and Drug Administration asked Merck and the other makers of oral bisphosphonates to mention the jaw necrosis risk on its product labels.

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In 2005, 24 million prescriptions for bone health were written for Boniva and Fosamax in the United States. But the side effects can be severe, and have caused many patients to drop the drugs. Ill effects include heartburn, ulcers, esophageal bleeding and osteonecrosis of the jaw (dead jaw). ONJ results in jaw bones that don’t heal, the inability to eat, perpetual bad breath, and constant pain that has no cure. (Pharma Licensing)

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Procter & Gamble’s Actonel osteoporosis drug is expanding its potential audience among men. The Food and Drug Administration has approved Actonel's once-a-week version to help increase bone mass in men with osteoporosis. Previously, Actonel had been approved to treat the disease in postmenopausal women and in men with steroid-induced osteoporosis. The approval is another step forward for Actonel, the only pharmaceutical product among the 22 P&G brands with more than $1 billion in annual sales. (Read more in the Enquirer)

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Since 2003, more than 3,000 published cases of osteonecrosis of the jaw (ONJ) have been reported from taking bisphosphonates. While most of the cases involve cancer patients who take the intravenous versions of the drug; a few years ago, ONJ began turning up in healthy women taking Fosamax to increase bone density.
Most documented cases have been in people who have had a tooth extraction. (Read more about Fosamax ONJ)

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Researchers from the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Loyola University have published suggestions for the management of adverse effects associated with intravenous bisphosphonate therapy. The details of this report appeared in the June 2006 issue of the Annals of Oncology. Aredia and Zometa intravenous bisphosphonates are widely used to prevent or treat bone loss in patients with cancer and to treat cancer related hypercalcemia. The article cites that about 2 percent of patients have serious complications after receiving these intravenous drugs. The article goes on to state the list of complications and how if any may be prevented. (Cancer Consultants)

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