Exact Answer: 3 to 5 Years
Prolia is a liquid solution containing denosumab as the active drug. The medication is from the class of rank ligand inhibitors. It comes in a prefilled syringe and has to be injected under the skin by the doctor. It can be injected either under the skin in the stomach, the upper arm, or the upper thigh.
The main objective of the usage of Prolia is to treat osteoporosis and reduce the chances of bone loss. They are particularly important for those who are in significant danger of bone fractures. These include males and females with osteoporosis. It also includes men who have taken medications for prostate cancer and women who have taken medications for breast cancer.
How Long Can You Take Prolia?
Prolia is available in packs that contain 60 mg of medications in them. It comes in a prefilled syringe. Each of the syringes of prolia has one milliliter of medication which makes up for one dose of prolia. A person is recommended by doctors to have one Prolia injection every six months.
To study the effects and significance of Prolia, a study was conducted. Two groups were formed for this purpose, out of which, one was given the Prolia injection and one was not. The group not receiving Prolia injection was labeled as the placebo group.
It was noticed that Prolia reduces the number of new vertebral fractures in men and women considerably. For the first year, while 2.2% of the placebo group had fractures, only 0.9% of the Prolia group experienced them. Thus, after Prolia for a year, the chances of getting fractures decreased by 1.3%.
In the second year of taking Prolia, 5% of the placebo group had fractures compared to just 1.4% of the Prolia group. It was concluded that two years of medications led to 3.6% less fractures in the medicated group.
When the study further progressed to the third year, a 7.3% of the placebo group had experienced fractures by then. On the contrary, only 2.3% of the Prolia group had fractures in the three years. Thus, the regular dosage of Prolia decrease the chances of bone fractures by 5%.
| Percentage Reduction In Chances Of Bone Fractures | Time Period |
| 1.3% | 1 year |
| 3.6% | 2 year |
| 4.9% | 3 year |
Why Can Prolia Be Taken For That Long?
Prolia has shown remarkable improvement in bone density resulting in lesser bone features. In the study above, with successive Prolia injections two times a year, one can notice that the probability of fractures reduced to 1.3% in the first year itself.
There are no recommendations on how long Prolia has to be taken. However, many studies have concluded that the medication can be safely given for more than there years. One another study also showed that it be given for 8 years.
A reason why prolia is taken for so long is that it cannot be stopped all of a sudden. Before stopping the intake of prolia, a patient should consult the healthcare workers. Stopping the injections without any doctoral consultation may be bad for the health of the person.
People who have abruptly stopped Prolia have experienced an increase in bone fractures within a year of the stoppage. There may be an increase in the number of vertebrae fractures. It is because the sudden stoppage of Prolia injections leads to an increase in bone turnover coupled with rapid bone resorption.
If a person wants to stop receiving Prolia injections, the doctor might suggest they start another osteoporosis medicine. This will help to counter the increase in the chances of vertebrae fractures and will be instrumental in protecting the patients against those risks.
Conclusion
Prolia is an injectable medication. It is used in the treatment of osteoporosis and it also significantly decreases the chances of bone fractures. If a person intends to stop these injections, he cannot do it abruptly but in consultation with the doctor.
Upon taking the Prolia injections, there is a 1.3% less chance of getting fractures in the first year, 3.6% less in the second year, and 4.9% fewer chances in the third year. This is as compared to the people who do not take the injection.
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