Abnormally high or low blood calcium levels are linked to an increased chance of premature death in non-dialysis kidney disease patients. Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) often have abnormally high or low blood calcium levels due to their compromised kidney function and the effects of commonly used medications.
 
In a new study, abnormally high calcium levels were linked to higher death rates among patients particularly when high calcium levels were present for a prolonged period of time. Compared with patients with normal blood calcium levels, patients with abnormally high levels had a 31 percent increased risk of death. Those with low calcium levels had a 21 percent increased risk of death. The findings, appearing in the Clinical Journal of the American Society Nephrology (CJASN), indicate the potential importance of finding drugs or other treatments that maintain normal blood calcium levels in non-dialysis patients.  

This article originally appeared in the February 2010 issue of Kidney Beginnings: The Electronic Newsletter.