Calcitonin is a natural hormone produced by the thyroid gland that contributes to calcium regulation in the bone, kidney, and intestine.
Osteoporosis Medicine
Calcitonin is a medicine approved for treatment of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women who are 5 years or more after menopause. Calcitonin is available by the brand names Miacalcin® and Fortical®. Miacalcin, which is made from salmon, is available by injection or nasal spray. Fortical is a recombinant version available in nasal spray dosing one spray once a day.
Effectiveness?
The pivotal fracture trial done with nasal Miacalcin was fraught with multiple limitations. The effectiveness of calcitonin for reduction of fracture risk has been questioned. The 2012 updated review of osteoporosis medicines by a panel of experts for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) did not include calcitonin in the report. The reason given for excluding calcitonin was “it has been excluded from this report at the subject matter experts’ request, since most authorities no longer consider calcitonin to be appropriate treatment for osteoporosis.”
Other Resources:
Fortical product website
www.fortical.com
Miacalcin product information
http://www.pharma.us.novartis.com/products/miacalcin.shtml