OBJECTIVE To assess the association of abnormalities of ionized calcium levels with mortality in a heterogeneous cohort of critically ill patients. DESIGN Retrospective, combined clinical and biochemical study. SETTING Four combined medical/surgical intensive care units. PATIENTS Cohort of 7,024 adult critically ill patients. INTERVENTIONS None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS We studie...

BACKGROUND Calcium is an essential mineral often taken as a daily, long-term nutritional supplement. Data suggests that once-daily dosing is important with regard to long-term compliance of both drugs and nutritional supplements. OBJECTIVE This study was undertaken to compare the bioavailability of a single serving of two calcium supplements in healthy, premenopausal women. DESIGN A two-per...

Both calcium-containing and noncalcium-containing phosphate binders can increase gastrointestinal calcium absorption. Previously, we observed that lanthanum carbonate administration to rats with renal failure is not associated with increased calciuria. Additionally, lanthanum carbonate treatment in dialysis patients has been associated with a less pronounced initial decrease in serum parathyroi...

Relations between platelet cytosolic calcium, parathyroid hormone, and blood pressure were investigated in 91 normotensive subjects: 47 men and 44 women ranging in age from 24 to 70 years. The men had higher mean arterial blood pressure, serum creatinine, and body mass index than the women. Serum total calcium, plasma ionized calcium, and parathyroid hormone (measured as both intact hormone and...

BACKGROUND It is ionized calcium that is physiologically active and under homeostatic control; however, total calcium is more conveniently measured. Formulae for correction of calcium to account for albumin binding have not been validated in a dialysis setting. METHODS We measured ionized calcium simultaneously with total calcium (t[Ca]), albumin, total protein and pH before dialysis in 50 st...

BACKGROUND Cadmium (Cd) can cause renal damage and osteoporosis after high-level exposure. Recently such effects, including increased urinary excretion of calcium, have been shown also at low-level exposure, as measured by Cd in blood or urine. However, associations with kidney Cd have not been examined. The aim of this study was to explore the relation between kidney Cd and urinary calcium exc...

INTRODUCTION Gestational diabetes is defined as carbohydrate intolerance resulting in hyperglycemia of variable severity with the first recognition during pregnancy. Established risk factors for gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) are maternal age, obesity, family history of diabetes, etc. Vitamin D, parathyroid hormone (PTH), and various other hormones are known for their function in maintaini...

The hypothesis that 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25-(OH)2 vitamin D3] modulates vascular smooth muscle contractile function was tested. 1,25-(OH)2 vitamin D3 (50 ng/day) was administered by intraperitoneal injection over a 3-day period to 13-15-week-old male spontaneously hypertensive and Wistar-Kyoto normotensive rats. On the fourth day, serum was prepared and contractile force generation of is...

Parathyroid carcinoma is very rare, with only a few documented cases. Hence, metastatic lesions are infrequently documented on scintigraphic imaging. We present a case of a 63-year-old female presenting with elevated serum levels of ionized calcium and parathyroid hormone (PTH) who was referred to our department for a parathyroid scan with SPECT/ CT. Parathyroid scintigraphy showed a focus of i...