Interrelationships between blood pressure, serum calcium and other biochemical variables

The association of serum calcium with blood pressure (BP), was examined in a group of 727 male industrial workers aged 20-69 in Israel, who underwent screening for risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Serum calcium was found to be significantly correlated with systolic BP (r = 0.18, p less than 0.001) only among those under the age of 40. This association persisted after adjustment for age and serum albumin levels but was not statistically significant after further adjustment for serum cholesterol. These findings contribute to the evidence implicating calcium as a key factor in the control of blood pressure. However, the fact that adjustment for serum cholesterol levels eliminated the significance of the association between BP and serum calcium suggests that this association may not be direct.