Bone density and WLS...

I'm going to post this on the DS and RNY Forums since both surgeries are malabsorptive.  Just wondering if there are any double blind technical studies concerning bone density and WLS.  My surgeon recommended a bone density scan...While my PCP said I didn't need one.  Never got one (I was self pay).  My feeling is it is what it is (almost 6 years out).  All my labs are good...I take my calcium daily.  Just wondering, of those of you who are many years out, how do your scans look?  Thanks, Brian  PS  I ride my bike a lot and am worried about crashes and brittle bone disease...

 I'm 10 years post op from WLS, revision 2 years ago to reduce malabsorption and I have osteoporosis.  First scan about 6 or so years ago was borderline, next one a year and half ago was much worse, this year I was diagnosed.  To be honest I wasn't taking as much cacium as I should have with the malabsorption I had.  I probably took about 1000 to 1500 a day, plus my D was in the toilet.  I had an infusion of Reclast a few months ago.  Miserable experience.  The day after I felt like a truck hit me but after that it was better.
I would definitely invest in a scan.  If things are going downhill the sooner to find out the sooner you can do something about it.

I had a bone density test done 3 years ago, as a baseline for future tests.  It was 3 years RNY post op and I was 62 years old. I tested in the "narrow gray area", known as osteopenia.  Not the normal of a lot younger persson, nor did I test positive for osteoperosis. I keep my D3 labs at 90+ and I take 4 Calcium Citrate Only capsules from vitalady.com daily. Each capsule is 1035mg calcium citrate, with 300mg of elemental calcium.  Most caclium citrate is only 25% elemental calcium meaning that 3 of the 600 mg calcium citrate only gives you about 450mg elemental calcium.  Calcium citrate is the form we need, but the amount of elemental calcium is very important.  I've only had one scan, and I think my insurance pays for one every 4-5 years after 60.  DAAVE

Well, I think you do need a bone density scan because that's the only way to see how your bones are doing.  Your labs won't really tell you until your bones are nearly all gone.  You wanna know if there is a problem before then.  I've only had one scan so far and I forget the exact numbers but it was just fine.  I need to get another, though.  

They aren't horribly expensive, maybe $300 or so, if you have to self pay.  I'd take your surgeon's word for it about needing one.  Your surgeon is likely more informed about WLS than your PCP.

I'm not aware of any studies, though.

I am aware of three studies, but only two are fully available online:

http://jcem.endojournals.org/content/93/10/3735.short
http://jcem.endojournals.org/content/89/3/1061.short

Yes, you should have a bone density scan, and the sooner the better so you have something as close as possible to a "baseline".  The longer you wait after surgery, the less of a true baseline it may be.  You should also have follow-up scans every couple of years.  As Kelly said, problems with your bones won't show up in labs until the is already a problem.

Lora