Hypocalcemia and hypercalcemia are rare in healthy patients, but can be caused by certain diseases such as parathyroid problems, kidney disease, and cancer. Elderly patients and neonates are at higher risk for these conditions. Surgery and bone injuries can also lead to hypocalcemia.
In otherwise healthy patients, hypocalcemia and hypercalcemia are relatively rare conditions. A healthy body is usually able to regulate the level of calcium in the blood without any difficulty, although there are diseases that can cause calcium levels to rise or fall. Patients with certain ailments, such as parathyroid problems, kidney failure, or certain types of cancer, may experience one of these conditions, depending on the nature of the disease. The risk of both hypocalcaemia and hypercalcaemia is greatest in elderly patients, and the incidence of hypocalcaemia is greatest in pediatric medicine, especially among neonates.
Problems with the parathyroid gland are rare, affecting only about 25 in 100,000 patients, but often lead to hypocalcemia and hypercalcemia. This gland is partially responsible for maintaining the balance of numerous minerals and enzymes, including calcium. The absence of hormones released by this gland, which occurs most frequently when the gland is removed during an operation on the thyroid gland, causes the bones to retain calcium rather than allowing some of it to remain in the bloodstream, resulting in hypocalcemia. An overactive parathyroid gland can cause your bones to lose too much calcium, causing the opposite condition, hypercalcemia.
Kidney disease and kidney cancer can also lead to hypocalcemia and hypercalcemia. These diseases affect about 10% of the adult population, although the percentage of people with hypocalcemia or hypercalcemia due to these diseases is lower. Kidney problems can lead to hypocalcemia and hypercalcemia because, if the kidneys aren’t working properly, they can allow too much calcium to leave the body through the urine or reabsorb too much of the mineral back into the body.
Hypocalcemia is rare in pediatrics and hypercalcemia is rarely observed. Hypocalcemia is common in children born too early or too young. About 30% of babies born with a birth weight of less than 3.3 pounds (1,500 grams) and 89% of those born before 32 weeks of gestation have very low or no blood calcium concentrations.
In geriatrics, the prevalence of both hypocalcemia and hypercalcemia is higher than that observed in the adult population. While still uncommon, elderly patients are at increased risk for disorders that lead to high or depleted blood calcium levels. Patients with any form of cancer are also more likely to develop hypocalcemia and hypercalcemia, which occurs in 20% to 40% of cancer patients. Patients who have had surgery or an injury in which a bone has been damaged are at great risk of developing hypocalcemia, as injured bone needs additional calcium to repair itself.
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