These infusions or injections are available in Savannah and now at the LCRP’s locations in Bluffton and Hilton Head

An estimated 10 million people age 50 years and older have osteoporosis or osteopenia in the United States.

Osteoporosis is a bone disease that occurs when the body loses too much bone, makes too little bone or both. A healthy bone looks like a honeycomb. When osteoporosis happens, the holes and spaces in the “honeycomb” are much larger than in a healthy bone.

Related Article: Understanding risk factors, diagnosing and treating osteoporosis 

If you are diagnosed with osteoporosis, your doctor may recommend certain lifestyle changes, such as resistance training, over-the-counter supplements or quitting smoking. If that doesn’t help strengthen your bones, certain medications can be prescribed.

Some of these medications must be given under the guidance of the care team at an infusion center, which St. Joseph’s/Candler offers in both Georgia and South Carolina.

In Savannah, the St. Joseph’s/Candler Center for Infusion Therapy (located in the Heart & Lung Building on the Candler Hospital Campus) accepts referrals to offer these osteoporosis medications to patients in and around Savannah.

In South Carolina, the Lewis Cancer & Research Pavilion offers the comprehensive Bone Health Program to all patients – whether you have cancer or not – with an osteoporosis diagnosis. Our South Carolina infusion centers are located in Bluffton and Hilton Head.

The medications offered at all three locations are: Prolia (an injection, given every six months), Reclast (an infusion, given once a year) and Evenity (an injection, given once a month for a year before transitioning to Prolia).

Patients must have an order from a provider and a DEXA scan within two years.

Related Article: What is a DEXA scan?

About the LCRP’s Bone Health Program

For those patients prescribed one of those three medications by their primary care provider or gynecologist, the LCRP created the Bone Health Program to help you manage your course of treatment. The goal is to treat your condition in a timely manner while maintaining the highest quality of care to meet your individual needs, explains Chris Petrera, LPN, Bone Health Program team leader.

And why is this important? Genetic factors, gender, medical treatments and a variety of other factors can contribute to bone loss. This can result in bones that may become thin and fragile, resulting in fractures. We want to address your diagnosis as early as possible to prevent you from potentially experiencing any broken bones.

“The purpose of the program is to make sure patients get treated in a timely fashion to make sure there’s no delays in scans, testing or treatment,” Petrera says. “We wouldn’t want any delayed treatments that were not absolutely necessary.”

(Sometimes treatment may be delayed if there are other medical concerns, such as surgeries, dental work or if the patient is on an antibiotic.)

The Bone Health Program has a dedicated team that provides individualized treatment plans based on your diagnosis. You will work directly with Petrera to ensure the appropriate labs and scans are ordered, authorizations are filled and you are scheduled on time so no medication doses are missed, essentially managing all aspects of your treatment, Petrera explains.

“What you can expect, without a doubt, is good communication,” Petrera says. “I keep an open line, and I try to call patients back the same day to address any concerns. I can also help them get orders for DEXA scans or any other orders they may need.”

Your primary care physician or gynecologist can refer you to the Bone Health Program. Or, you have the option to self-refer by calling Petrera at 912-210-4876. He can coordinate with your physician to start your treatment program.

Once the referral is approved, participation in the Bone Health Program begins with a consultation with our team. You will meet with a nurse practitioner at least once a year as the frequency of visits varies from patient to patient. You will also be required to have lab work done before each dose, and DEXA scans are required every two years.

We also will provide education on your medications and guidelines before your treatment begins to ensure you understand the treatment plan and address your questions.

When Petrera became team lead of the Bone Health Program in October 2024, there were 515 patients receiving treatment. That number is now more than 620 and growing.

“With these medications, you want to see either stability in your bone health or you want to see improvement,” Petrera says. “So far, I’ve only had two patients that transitioned off their medication because it wasn’t working. So the success rate is pretty high.”

The Bone Health Program is offered at our infusion centers at the SJ/C Bluffton Campus, 100 Buckwalter Place Boulevard, and in Hilton Head at 45 Hospital Center Commons. For more information, call 912-210-4876.

If you are looking for treatment in Savannah, call our Center for Infusion Therapy at 912-819-7776 to speak with a team member and get started.