The lowdown on transdermal calcium

I've received so many PM's and inquiries about the transdermal calcium I'm using, that I thought I'd give an update about my situation and pass along the info I have about the calcium
As many of you know, I have a very stubborn resistance to absorption of calcium and vitamin D that caused  me to develop osteoporosis in my hips and osteopenia in my spine.  My surgeon, of course, immediately suggested a revision, but a) Because I am not struggling to keep weight on and kind of LIKE being of a normal BMI; and b) My other labs seem to have righted themselves with appropriate supplementation, I declined, with the hope that I'd find a way to solve the problem.    In November, my D was an 18, my serum calcium was a scary 7.7 and my PTH was, I believe 113.   I started taking Vitamin D3 infusions twice a week.    My D did go up to 32, but my PTH remained unchanged.   My calcium gradually came up to about an 8.4 and hovers there now - so just under the normal range.    My D then plummeted to a 21, and we were very discouraged.    Now, most of you know that you can supplement D till the cows come home, but without calcium, your PTH and D aren't going to do much.   I was taking 7,000 mg of calcium and still, that PTH stayed high.   My doctor suggested I try going to Mayo Clinic for a consult, because "somebody oughta do a paper on me" and I began researching that option.  In the meantime, I found a reference to transdermal calcium on the internet being used for individuals with autism and crohn's disease.    The pharmacy was Lee Silsby Compounding Pharmacy (800) 918-8831.    I called them and they told me I needed a prescription from my doctor.   They also compounded sublingual Vitamin D in an oil suspension.   I was leery of this because even though it's absorbed by the sublingual glands and doesn't reach the digestive tract,  I still worry about the oil base.   I had my wonderful patient doctor call in scripts for both the D (100 k iu) and the Calcium (100 mg/ml TD gel) to the pharmacy.   My D is tested once a week, my PTH once a week.   I also ordered Vitalady's 10 k iu sublingual tablets.  
So, two months ago, I started on the sublingual D (100 k iu a day) and about six weeks ago I started on the transdermal gel.    The gel's kinda icky - it's salty and sticky and I don't like it, but I persisted in using it.     My D went from a 21 to a 28.    Okay - we're getting somewhere at least.  I'm two points below the barely acceptable range.   Lo and behold though - I had my PTH done last week, and it's gone from a 113 to a 77!   That must mean that the transdermal calcium must be working!    I was getting huge doses of D intravenously, and not much change, and boom - in comes the calcium.    I am cautiously optimistic that this is going to do the trick.    I also found a company owned by an internal medicine doctor called seabluevitamins.com.  They compound a non-prescription calcium in a cosmetic grade cream that is supposed to be more comfortable to use.    It's far cheaper than the compounded gel too.    I still take oral calcium - but not as much.  I was taking 7,000 mg a day of calcium, now I'm taking about 3,000 mg a day.
Keep your fingers crossed for  me, and I hope that this information can also help some of you that are struggling with calcium absorption.   I don't recommend it being a substitute for oral calcium if your levels are good ,because it's kind of a pain in the ass to use, but hopefully, this will do the trick for some of you!

Wow!  That sounds amazing!  I'd love for you to tell us about the one from seabluevitamins.com when you get using it.  This sounds like a great addition to our vitamin/mineral arsenal.

I'm so happy to hear about your progress, Julie.  I admire your persistence.

Seablue also manufactures transdermal B and a host of other products as well.
When I spoke with Dr. Brierre, the woman who owns the company she said that she sells her products to many WLS'ers.

http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/minerals/manganese/ Is what I attempted to post earlier.  I hope this works. 

Thanks for the update, Julie...  wondering what is the difference between the dry D in the sublinguql and the D in the capsule.  Does it have to be in any different format to be taken up in the sublinguql glands? 
That's a great drop in your PTH too!

I am wondering if manganese was tested for you after having read this

www.http://lpi.oretonstate.edu/infocenter/minerals/manganese /

Bone reforming is so very complex.  The doc at Mayo, is he an endo or a bone specialist?

edit to fix the link. 

Patti - This link isn't working. Can you please check it and repost?  Thanks.

-- Lenore

Hi Patti:
I have suglingual D in two different forms:   sublingual tablets from Vitalady and the D suspended in oil from LeeSilsby.   According to a friend of mine who is a medical technologist, oil is the optimal suspension for D.   BUT - I remain wary of it.   So, I take about half of my 100 k of D in the drops and half in the tiny tablets by Superior Source.   The Superior Source are dry tablets and dissolve very rapidly under the tongue.   Both completely bypass the intestinal tract as they enter the bloodstream through the sublingual glands.    It makes sense that this would be a good method of delivery.  That's how B12 works too.
The doc at Mayo (and the doc at Henry Ford I'm seeing this Wednesday) are both endocrinologists who specialize in bone and mineral metabolism.  The doctor I'm seeing this week has published on D malabsorption in post-WLS patients.

Thanks for that info, Julie.  Before you used the sublingual tablets, did you try using the powder from the D capsules... I imagine it is essentially the same product, just a different formula? 
I hope this doc you will be seeing this week can do all the necessary work to get you where you need to be.  You sure have been through it!  

Could you PM me those docs names so I can see if my endo is familiar with their research?  I would love for him to be schooled in this ahead of time in case I run into problems some years out.  I don't know anything about my mother or her side of the family and know that genetics plays a huge role in  osteo. 

I did try breaking the Dry D open and letting that dissolve under my tongue, but it was very cumbersome and a large amount.   I take 20,000 iu's (two sublingual tablets) at a time, five times a day right now.   I'll send you a PM with that info.

THANK YOU!!!

That's great news, Julie.  Thanks.  I've sent the link to this thread to my Mom with Crohn's. She has awful calcium, D and osteoporosis problems.  I've been trying to convince her to try the transdermal calcium, and some of your other strategies. She has consented to try the sublingual D, which we've ordered from Vitalady.  I hope this post will help bring her around to the calcium gel or cream.

Your posts make a big difference, I think, for a lot of people. Thanks again.

-- Lenore