Hypocalcemia, (Low Blood Calcium) A Simple Guide To The Condition, Diagnosis, Treatment And Related Conditions

By Kenneth Kee

Hypocalcemia is a frequent biochemical disorder that can vary in severity from being asymptomatic in mild cases to presenting as an acute life-threatening crisis.
Hypocalcemia is too low calcium (below 8.4 mg/dL or 2.25 mmol/L) in the blood.
Normal blood Calcium varies from 8.4 to 10.4 mg/dL (2.25-2.6 mmol/L) controlled by 3 main calcium-regulating hormones (parathyroid hormone –PTH, vitamin D, and calcitonin) through their specific effects on the bowel, kidneys, and skeleton.
Calcium and phosphate are interrelated both controlled by the parathyroid hormones and Vitamin D which control the calcium and phosphate exchange between the blood and 3 systems in the body:
1. Skeletal
2. Gastrointestinal
3. Renal
Parathyroid hormones work mainly on the bones and kidney to raise the blood calcium and increase the phosphate excretion.
Vitamin D raises the intestinal absorption of calcium and phosphate.
About 50% of the total serum calcium is attached to protein, and the remaining free ionized calcium is physiologically active.
Serum calcium levels must be corrected for the blood albumin value before confirming the diagnosis of hypercalcemia or hypocalcemia.
Hypocalcemia (corrected serum total calcium level < 2.12 mmol/L) is most often a result of vitamin D inadequacy or hypoparathyroidism, or a resistance to these hormones
Low calcium levels have also been linked with many drugs such as cisplatin, antiepileptics, aminoglycosides, diuretics, bisphosphonates and proton pump inhibitors; there are other causes.
Calcium is a vital mineral, used by the body to build strong bones and teeth.
Calcium is also needed for the heart and other muscles to function properly.
When a person does not get enough calcium, he or she raises the risk of forming disorders like osteoporosis, osteopenia, and calcium deficiency disease (hypocalcemia).
Children who do not get enough calcium may not develop to their full potential adult height.
This low calcium may be due to a variety of factors, such as:
1. Poor calcium intake over a long period of time, especially in childhood
2. Medicines that may decrease calcium absorption
3. Dietary intolerance to foods rich in calcium
4. Hormonal changes, particularly in women
5. Certain genetic factors
Symptoms:
1. Confusion or memory loss
2. Muscle spasms
3. Numbness and tingling in the hands, feet, and face
4. Depression
5. Hallucinations
6. Muscle cramps
7. Weak and brittle nails
8. Easy fracturing of the bones
Signs:
1. Chvostek's sign
2. Trousseau's sign
3. Seizures.
4. Prolonged QT interval
Diagnosis is by:
Blood for the corrected calcium level or ionized calcium level
Treatment:
The patient is treated where symptoms (seizures, tetany) are present or there is a high risk of complications with a serum calcium

• Language: English
• Publisher: Kenneth Kee
• Release date: Aug 1, 2017
• ISBN: 9781370068616

Kenneth Kee

Medical doctor since 1972.Started Kee Clinic in 1974 at 15 Holland Dr #03-102, relocated to 36 Holland Dr #01-10 in 2009.Did my M.Sc (Health Management ) in 1991 and Ph.D (Healthcare Administration) in 1993.Dr Kenneth Kee is still working as a family doctor at the age of 74However he has reduced his consultation hours to 3 hours in the morning and 2 hours inthe afternoon.He first started writing free blogs on medical disorders seen in the clinic in 2007 on http://kennethkee.blogspot.com.His purpose in writing these simple guides was for the health education of his patients which is also his dissertation for his Ph.D (Healthcare Administration). He then wrote an autobiography account of his journey as a medical student to family doctor on his other blog http://afamilydoctorstale.blogspot.comThis autobiography account “A Family Doctor’s Tale” was combined with his early “A Simple Guide to Medical Disorders” into a new Wordpress Blog “A Family Doctor’s Tale” on http://ken-med.com.From which many free articles from the blog was taken and put together into 1000 eBooks.He apologized for typos and spelling mistakes in his earlier books.He will endeavor to improve the writing in futures.Some people have complained that the simple guides are too simple.For their information they are made simple in order to educate the patients.The later books go into more details of medical disorders.He has published 1000 eBooks on various subjects on health, 1 autobiography of his medical journey, another on the autobiography of a Cancer survivor, 2 children stories and one how to study for his nephew and grand-daughter.The purpose of these simple guides is to educate patient on health disorders and not meant as textbooks.He does not do any night duty since 2000 ever since Dr Tan had his second stroke.His clinic is now relocated to the Buona Vista Community Centre.The 2 units of his original clinic are being demolished to make way for a new Shopping Mall.He is now doing some blogging and internet surfing (bulletin boards since the 1980's) startingwith the Apple computer and going to PC.The entire PC is upgraded by himself from XT to the present Pentium duo core.The present Intel i7 CPU is out of reach at the moment because the CPU is still expensive.He is also into DIY changing his own toilet cistern and other electric appliance.His hunger for knowledge has not abated and he is a lifelong learner.The children have all grown up and there are 2 grandchildren who are even more technically advanced than the grandfather where mobile phones are concerned.This book is taken from some of the many articles in his blog (now with 740 posts) A Family Doctor’s Tale.Dr Kee is the author of:"A Family Doctor's Tale""Life Lessons Learned From The Study And Practice Of Medicine""Case Notes From A Family Doctor"

Book preview

Hypocalcemia,

(Low Blood Calcium)

A

Simple

Guide

To

The Condition,

Diagnosis,

Treatment

And

Related Conditions

By

Dr Kenneth Kee

M.B.,B.S. (Singapore)

Ph.D (Healthcare Administration)

Copyright Kenneth Kee 2017 Smashwords Edition

Published by Kenneth Kee at Smashwords.com

Dedication

This book is dedicated

To my wife Dorothy

And my children

Carolyn, Grace

And Kelvin

This book describes Hypocalcemia, Diagnosis and Treatment and Related Diseases which is seen in some of my patients in my Family Clinic.

(What The patient Need to Treat Hypocalcemia)

This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If the patient would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each reader.

If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy.

Thank the patient for respecting the hard work of this author.

Introduction

I have been writing medical articles for my blog http://kennethkee.blogspot.com (A Simple Guide to Medical Disorder) for the benefit of my patients since 2007.

My purpose in writing these simple guides was for the health education of my patients.

Health Education was also my dissertation for my Ph.D (Healthcare Administration).

I then wrote an autobiolographical account of his journey as a medical student to family doctor on his other blog http://afamilydoctorstale.blogspot.com.

This autobiolographical account A Family Doctor’s Tale was combined with my early A Simple Guide to Medical Disorders into a new Wordpress Blog A Family Doctor’s Tale on http://kenkee481.wordpress.com.

From which many free articles from the blog was taken and put together into 800 amazon kindle books and 200 into Smashwords.com eBooks.

Some people have complained that the simple guides are too simple.

For their information they are made simple in order to educate the patients.

The later books go into more details of medical disorders.

The first chapter is always from my earlier blogs which unfortunately tends to have typos and spelling mistakes.

Since 2013, I have tried to improve my spelling and writing.

As I tried to bring the patient the latest information about a disorder or illness by reading the latest journals both online and offline, I find that I am learning more and improving on my own medical knowledge in diagnosis and treatment for my patients.

Just by writing all these simple guides I find that I have learned a lot from your reviews (good or bad), criticism and advice.

I am sorry for the repetitions in these simple guides as the second chapters onwards have new information as compared to my first chapter taken from my blog.

I also find repetition definitely help me and maybe some readers to remember the facts in the books more easily.

I apologize if these repetitions are irritating to some readers.

Chapter 1

Hypocalcemia (Low Blood Calcium)

What is Hypocalcemia?

Hypocalcemia is a frequent biochemical disorder that can vary in severity from being asymptomatic in mild cases to presenting as an acute life-threatening crisis.

Hypocalcemia is too low calcium (below 8.4 mg/dL or 2.25 mmol/L) in the blood.

Normal blood Calcium varies from 8.4 to 10.4 mg/dL (2.25-2.6 mmol/L) controlled by 3 main calcium-regulating hormones (parathyroid hormone –PTH, vitamin D, and calcitonin) through their specific effects on the bowel, kidneys, and skeleton.

Calcium and phosphate are interrelated both controlled by the parathyroid hormones and Vitamin D which control the calcium and phosphate exchange between the blood and 3 systems in the body:

1. Skeletal

2. Gastrointestinal

3. Renal

Parathyroid hormones work mainly on the bones and kidney to raise the blood calcium and increase the phosphate excretion.

Vitamin D raises the intestinal absorption of calcium and phosphate.

About 50% of the total serum calcium is attached to protein, and the remaining free ionized calcium is physiologically active.

Serum calcium levels must be corrected for the blood albumin value before confirming the diagnosis of hypercalcemia or hypocalcemia.

Hypocalcemia (corrected serum total calcium level < 2.12 mmol/L) is most often a result of vitamin D inadequacy or hypoparathyroidism, or a resistance to these hormones

Low calcium levels have also been linked with many drugs such as cisplatin, antiepileptics, aminoglycosides, diuretics, bisphosphonates and proton pump inhibitors; there are other causes.

Calcium is a vital mineral, used by the body to build strong bones and teeth.

Calcium is also needed for the heart and other muscles to function properly.

When a person does not get enough calcium, he or she raises the risk of forming disorders like osteoporosis, osteopenia, and calcium deficiency disease (hypocalcemia).

Children who do not get enough calcium may not develop to their full potential adult height.

A person should consume the advised quantity of calcium per day through the food eaten, supplements or vitamins.

Hypocalcemia ranges from an asymptomatic biochemical abnormality to a life-threatening disorder, depending on the length, severity, and rapidity of development.

What are the causes of Hypocalcemia?

Causes:

Hypocalcemia is caused by loss of calcium from or inadequate entry of calcium into the circulation.

1. Hypoparathyroidism is the most frequent cause of hypocalcemia and often develops because of