What Causes Paget's Disease?

QUESTION: I am a long time sufferer from Paget's Disease, and find it
difficult to believe that all that can be offered as treatment are some simple
pain pills. Can you tell me a bit about this disease, what causes it and what
medications can possibly help me?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ANSWER: Your desire to know more about your condition makes you the kind of
reader I enjoy responding to, in the hopes that this information can be of
help to you. Paget's disease of the bone (also called osteitis deformans) is
a chronic disease occurring in adults where hyperactive bone is replaced by a
softer bony like structure in various parts of the skeleton, such as the
pelvis, thigh bone and skull. Bone is in a constant state of remodeling, a
process of breakdown and build up. However in Paget's, the new bone is faulty
and can not perform all the duties of normal bone. The cause is unknown, but
about 3% of adults over the age of 40 suffer from the condition, with men more
commonly affected in about a 3 to 2 ratio over women. Many times there are no
symptoms, but when they do occur they include pain, stiffness, headaches, some
loss of hearing, increasing skull size and a general feeling of weariness and
loss of energy. The diagnosis is often made by chance on an x-ray, taken for
other reasons, which shows the typical pattern of bone growth. Generally pain
may be controlled by salicylates and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory
medications such as ibuprofen. Two other medications are used to successfully
treat and control the condition. Etidronate disodium may be taken in a dose
of 5 to 10 mg per kilogram of body weight, in a single dose each day for 6
months. Synthetic salmon calcitonin may also be effective.