Osteoporosis/reclast

Comments Submitted Says:
Sat, Dec 12 '09, 9:55 AM

had a reclast injection12/8/09 I had shorten on breath after the body aches and slight fever is this normal? I have rapid heartbeat everytime I try to doing anything like running the sweeper, dusting & etc.

Medical Professional Says:
Mon, Dec 14 '09, 6:53 AM
Flu-like symptoms exist in about 15% of patients who have Reclast (meaning 85% don't experience it). Your doctor should have told you to take Tylenol the day of your infusion and for three days following the infusion. You should have also drank two glasses of water the morning of the infusion, and eat normally.
The body aches have been seen in clinical trials, but this is the case for all drugs in the class (to include Fosamax, Boniva, and Actonel).
FYI, when a patient takes Reclast, 61% of the solution binds straight to the bones where it's needed and the remaining 39% is filtered by the kidney (you pee it out) within 24 hours- this means that you don't have the drug floating around in your system for a year (like some people incorrectly think- read the product/prescribing information for Reclast).
Regarding rapid heartbeat, this was not a typical side-effect, according to the prescribing information. A small percentage of patients who took Reclast in the major study experienced atrial-fibrilation, but most of those patients experienced it after 30 days of infusion, so there could be no connection to the drug (remember, the part that doesn't bind straight to the bone is peed out within 24 hours!). Maybe just take it easy for a few days and save the sweeping for next weekend. Hope this helps- good luck!