Dexa Scan in the Morning....

Have you had a Dexa Scan?  What's it like?  What will I learn from it?

I'm new to all this but when I mentioned to my surgeon a few weeks ago that I'm having some pain in my legs that feel like bone kinda pain he signed me up immediately for the scan.  I'm sure it's nothing, but we figured that a baseline scan is a good thing at 60 years old.

Hi Lee!

I have no idea what it is but good luck in the morning!!

Hi Rebecca,

It's a test for bone density.  Osteoporosis can be a side effect post-op as we age, so I'm getting it tested.

Its a great idea Lee. The really strange thing with osteoporosis is that U can be the world's most active person and still get bone loss if Ure prone to it - my Mom has never failed to do weight bearing aerobic exercise AT LEAST an hour a day all my life yet when she retired at 55 she was tested routinely and told she had the fragile bones of an eighty year old .

Thank God she got them strengthened .


I too was beginning to hunch over ( maybe partially related to the weight I carried ) ..and I got very very early preventive treatment and am standing up so much straighter and taller now YAY !

But its very important not to go too far with the phosphorus containing drugs too or they can cause bone LOSS ....

I generally take less than HALF the prescribed dosage and just take them LONGER . Call me a super cautious kitty.. I used to run a reconstructive dentists office and I have seen the results of degenerative bone disease ....

Also theres ZERO point to taking these drugs unless U also take the calcium /magnesium /vitamin D complex which is the building block of the bones Ure pushing Ur body to regenerate RELIGIOUSLY several times a day .

Also  theres ZERO  point to taking these drugs unless U also take the calcium /magnesium /vitamin D  complex which is the building block of the bones Ure  pushing Ur body to regenerate  RELIGIOUSLY  several times a day.

**Like**

What Ava said and add vitamin K2 to that. (New research in the last couple of years).
 

Ava,

Great advice.  What are the phosphorus containing drugs??  Inquiring minds want to know girl!

When I was first diagnosed with osteoporosis I found a few web sites that helped me understand what was going on. I saw osteopenia on my report that came back when I was a pre-op but since the doc didn't make a big deal of it I guess it didn't register with me what it was.

Anyway links: http://www.osteopenia3.com/dexascan.html

http://www.nof.org/ 

http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/vitamins/vitaminK/

--gina

I'll definitely check out those links Gina.

I may have to shore up my vitamin regimine at some point to be sure that I'm getting everything.  So far on my labs I don't have any deficiences and i make sure to get in my 1500 calcium citrate daily.

Have had several bone scans but not sure if they were Dexa?  If I don't know, probably not, I guess. 

If you are having some issues, it is better to find out now, for sure so you can treat it.  Good luck.  The scans I have had just mean you have to be still, nothing eles.

Thanks Price.

I have a friend who had RNY a few years ago.  She's a doctor and was getting in all of her vitamins and regularly monitoring her labs.  One day she fell down the stairs and her bones shattered.  Living on a farm, she had to be airlifted out to a major hospital because her entire right side was just shattered.  Just another case for really staying on top of the vitamins, even if we think we're just fine.

I wanted the scan so that I know what's going on inside without having to guess.