I’ve been taking SR (Sports Research) brand since April. I have no clue whether it helps with bone quality or not, but my nails are stronger and hair texture has improved. For me, these improvements are a sign that the supplement is filling a need somewhere in my body.
I am switching to a different brand (Zen Principle) with my next order – this is basically a matter of price. So I’m not really tied to a specific brand.
I have used Collegen Peptides on and off. I buy what is on sale. Not sure I’ve noticed improved hair or nails, but it helps for getting enough protein
ANY TIPS ABOUT BONE SCANS?
Time for my annual physical, and thanks to this group I had researched back in March and determined bone scan is covered on my medical insurance without being subject to the high deductible. That may or may not pan out, but I am willing to pay if needed. Will discuss getting bone scan with the doctor.
My mother had osteperosis, was severely stooped in her late 80s. It turns out my older sister has osteopenia, started getting bone scans age 50. I have a hope that running has helped me, but I did not start that until age 54 (about 5 years ago). In the decades prior, I did sometimes attend exercise classes.
What type of tips are you looking for?? You show up, lie there, and they do the scan. Nothing to it.
It’s good you’re getting one. It will provide you with good information in the future, as you compare later results to this one.
Thanks for the quick reply! I don’t know much about bone scans, thought there might be different types/methods …. a choice to be made.
Actually, I do have some tips.
And you can also look for clinicians who are certified here International Society for Clinical Densitometry (ISCD) Skeletal Health > Certify > Certification Resources > Certification Registry (it’s possible to simply enter city, zip, or state on this form to pull up local registrations)>
Look for a facility that has software to provide a Trabecular Bone Score (TBS) as well as regular DEXA report. This will give you some information about your bone microarchitecture, which can shed more light on bone structure and fracture risk.
If you have any reason to suspect that you could have subclinical (hidden) vertebral fractures already - for example, if you have back pain, rounding of your spine, or have lost height – you might want to ask your doctor to request a Vertebral Fracture Assessment (VFA) along with the DEXA scan. This can be done at the same time and will provide additional information bearing on fracture risk.
At the time of your scan, ask about the process for getting the full report (with images) of your scan. If you don’t specifically ask for this you are likely to be given a summary report only, which simply leaves out a lot of information that may be important. You will always be able to get the full report later, but the process to get it might be complicated, so it’s just going to be easier to ask for the reports in the first place, when you are there.
When you make your appointment, ask the facility what type of scanner they use. There are two main types – GE Lunar and Hologic. It doesn’t matter which one is used, but if you know in advance you will be able to do some advanced reading online to learn about proper positioning for each scan. So you will know what to expect and also be prepared to ask the right questions if it doesn’t seem like things are being done properly.
They should give you instructions in advance when you make your appointment about clothing – but if not – in general you want to wear comfortable clothing and avoid clothing with metal on your upper body, as metal from zippers or buttons can throw off the accuracy of the DEXA reading. The technician at the facility should be alert to those things, but you’ll save time if you aren’t wearing things that have to be removed in the first place.
Also, if you take a calcium supplement, you should not take it for at least 24 hours ahead of the scan. I think the problem is that if there is still calcium in your intestines it can also throw off the DEXA reading.
Wow, calmom! That’s some incredibly detailed and helpful info! Didn’t know…Thanks for asking, Colorado_mom!
Yes, I’ve developed a good list of the things I wish I had known about before I got my first and second scans.
And all I said was, Just lie there! Great info!!
Just had mine done. One hip is better than 2 years ago, the other worse. GYN suggests Prolia.
Anyone else?
I had the same thing happen - one hip improved & the other got a bit worse. My spine also got a bit worse. My doctor had suggested Fosamax, and she told me that if I preferred Prolia as an option I could tell her that I tried the Fosamax & didn’t tolerate it well (so insurance would pay). However, as I have posted in the past, I am not ready to take medication. My mom had some issues related to Fosamax, and I just prefer to hold off as long as possible.
@calmom, thanks for great tips! I’m supposed to get another dexascan in the near future. Never knew any of those things. Will have to print it out and refer to it when I’m scheduling.
THANKS!! That was great info.
My doctor had no pushback on me asking for bone scan (age 59, family history of osteoporosis). In fact, he and the nurse were both surprised that their automated system had not put it on my records checklist.
Sadly the ONE ISCD certified md in our state has died. There is no lab certified ISCD in our state.
Still a good list and info to research. I am supposed to get a dexascan “soon” and have had a few. Have been taking inhaled steroids over 20 years, as post-menopausal, am small-boned Asian woman and gave an older sister with osteoporosis.
As far as I can tell, there are no ISCD certified labs in California either, or anywhere else on the west coast. There seems to be one in New Mexico. But there are certified densitometrists, including a famous one. [Dr. Lani Simpson in Berkeley). So I suppose when the time comes, I can call her office and ask which facility they recommend locally – currently, I don’t know whether I will be scheduling a third scan anytime soon. I’ve read a couple of research studies that say that changes in bone density don’t really change the risk factor from what it was to start with, at least not within 3 or 4 years – so I’m kind of inclined to wait a few years. My exercise plan is going really, really well. I have no idea about my bone density, but I love my gym sessions, I feel amazing, and I definitely haven’t broken anything.
No CO listings on the link either. Perhaps just as well because the most straightforward way to do bone scan is as the PCP suggested, at the radiology dept at our local UHC clinic. The orders were there when I walked to the next building to make an appointment …. helped kill time waiting for my turn for blood draw.
My Dec 30 appt will be on a Hologic equipment.
The problem comes up when you want to track changes, comparing one scan to another.
The standard advice is to try to get subsequent scans at the same facility, same machine as previous scans.
The problem is that even if each scan is perfect, there is a significant margin of error on the machines. One researcher found that there was generally 4% variation in results when people were scanned – then got up and walked around the room, and then were rescanned again. In some instances (but less common) the results varied by as much as 7%. Summarized at BMD standardization
Results obtained from Hologic equipment will never match up with GE Lunar because the two systems position patients differently. So, for example, a BMD measurement of 1 g/cm2 on GE equates to a T-Score of -0.3, whereas the same measurement on Hologic equates to a T-Score of +1.2. In fact, the T-Score was invented as a way of coming up with a standardized measurement, precisely because of the differences in the ways the machines reported the actual areal measurement.
So I agree that it makes sense to just go to the facility tied to the health service or network you already use – that is exactly what I did. It’s just 2 years down the line I got another scan, and now I honestly have no clue my BMD has gotten worse or stayed the same. I know what the numbers on the report say - but I don’t know what the margin of error is for that facility; I do know that there is a positioning difference between the two scans but I don’t know how significant that is. So about the only benefit of scan #2 is that I got a really great education in DEXA (on my own, of course – the facility was happy to print off a highly misleading summary report)
Maybe I don’t need to compare DEXA results at all. I also know that it is unlikely that short-term changes in BMD will actually affect fracture rate; and given that DEXA readings aren’t that precise in any case, maybe I’d be fine with a DEXA once every 5 years.
I asked my doctor for a referral to a doctor who practices holistic/integrative medicine. Dr. S. is booked up until April but I am on a waitlist for an appointment. So maybe then I’ll be able to make more sense of things.
Great insights - thanks!
I mentioned the problem of facilities changing machines and the need to use the same facility/machine, and was told by my doc that that is no longer an issue. I am wondering why he said that.
I look at my DEXA’s as ballpark and the trend downward is consistent. More decline right after menopause, then less decline, then more decline when I went on an aromatase inhibitor for cancer (eliminates estrogen), then that levelled off a bit too.
I have made a large chart since 2001 with my DEXA’s every two years and the pattern is pretty clear regardless of the fine points of different machines and facilities and techs.
I could easily tell my bones weren’t in great shape and of course, having a few fractures after one movement certainly confirmed that. The DEXA gave me plenty of warning- which is the main purpose- but I could not tolerate any meds that I tried.
Now I do a Tymlos injection every day and feel sick for a few hours because I have to. If my DEXA gets worse I will be disappointed but I try to remember that bone quality will improve regardless.
Overall, I would go with “Just lie there” despite the wisdom and expertise of @calmom because it can get pretty overwhelming for most people and it is better to just get it done!
I think that having a good history over time is very useful, and I also think having that sort of data is likely to smooth out the wrinkles from machine inconsistencies. I can see this myself simply when I track my weight – I weigh myself 2 or 3 times a week, and log the weight in an app – sometimes I’m rather surprised at the fluctuations, but the point is to track the overall trend line, not the day-to-day ups and downs. The problem for me is that my first DEXA was in 2019 at age 65 – now I have #2 – it’s not altogether clear to me with Medicare would pay for a DEXA in a year or I would need to wait for 2 years … So it would take me a rather long time before I would have enough numbers to chart the changes in a meaningful way. My current plan is to wait until I can get my initial consult with that integrative medicine doctor, and get that doctor’s take on things.
So for someone just starting out with their first DEXA - I think it does make sense to ask some basic questions – even though I realize that for many of us there really isn’t all that many options to choose from in any case. I certainly have no intention of traveling two states away in order to use an accredited facility, for example. But I personally won’t have another DEXA unless and until I can use a facility that will provide the additional TBS information, as that would provide a different metric about bone strength.
Because I do not have a history of fracture - I don’t really accept the idea that my bones are weak – so I would need more evidence before I would consider medication. This sense that my bones are not fragile is reinforced as I have increased the intensity of exercise that I do over time. I found a great article that explains why bone density by itself doesn’t tell the whole story:
If anyone needs a CT scan of their spine or hips for any reason, then there is a QCT scan that can be done that provides much better info about overall bone strength. It doesn’t require anything extra – it can utilize the data from the scan. It’s just that CT scans are not routinely done for screening – so this is only really available as an add-on when the scan is being done for other reasons: