Hormonal Drugs Exam 1 Practice

Calcitonin’s therapeutic action targets bone resorption. It inhibits osteoclast-mediated bone breakdown, which reduces the release of calcium from bone into the bloodstream. As a result, serum calcium levels fall, making calcitonin useful in conditions of hypercalcemia and in helping slow bone loss in osteoporosis. In vertebral fractures, calcitonin can also provide analgesic effects, likely through mechanisms beyond simply lowering calcium, such as modulation of pain pathways. The opposite actions—stimulating osteoclasts, raising serum calcium, or increasing bone resorption—do not describe its therapeutic effect, so those choices are not correct.