BACKGROUND Ionized calcium (iCa) is measured frequently in hospitalized patients, and hypocalcemia is frequently found, seemingly supporting the practice. METHODS We retrieved the results of 58 040 iCa tests and records of intravenous (IV) and oral calcium supplementation from laboratory and hospital information systems and evaluated them for frequency of testing, frequency of hypocalcemia, a...

BACKGROUND This study was performed in an attempt to assess serum calcium, phosphorus, and alkaline phosphatase in adolescent girls and calcium supplementation in subjects with abnormal serum findings. METHODS A randomized, cross-sectional, cluster sampling, prospective, and descriptive trial was conducted from January through March 2003 for measurement of serum calcium, phosphorus, and alkal...

Early neonatal hypocalcemia is a common problem in prematurely born infants. To prevent it, therapy with intravenous calcium is often advised. We compared the efficacy and side-effects of intravenous and oral calcium supplementation in preterm and low birth-weight babies. Both the groups were comparable for birth weight, gestational age and cord blood calcium level. Oral calcium administration ...

This study was carried out to investigate the efficacy of sn-2 palmitic acid-fortified vegetable oil (Sn2PA) on calcium absorption and to confirm the synergistic effects of fructooligosaccharide on calcium absorption. Male SD rats were fed 6 kinds of casein based diets containing vegetable oil (control), sn-2 palmitic acid-fortified vegetable oil (Sn2PA) and Sn2PA with fructooligosaccharide(Sn2...

Vitamin D and calcium affect several pathways involved in inflammation, tumor growth, and immune surveillance relevant to carcinogenesis. Also, epidemiologic evidence indicates that calcium and vitamin D may reduce risk for developing colorectal adenomas and cancer. To investigate the effects of calcium and vitamin D on biomarkers of inflammation in colorectal adenoma patients, we conducted a p...

Thiazide diuretics are specific inhibitors of the Na-Cl cotransporter in the distal convoluted tubule (DCT). In addition to producing diuresis and natriuresis, they have a hypocalciuric effect. Recently, two apical calcium channels have been identified, transient receptor potential vanilloid 5 (TRPV5) and TRPV6; both are expressed in the DCT. We studied the effects of thiazides on mouse renal c...