Calcium deficiency in fluoride-treated osteoporotic patients despite calcium supplementation

To test the hypothesis that the osteogenic response to fluoride can increase the skeletal requirement for calcium, resulting in a general state of calcium deficiency and secondary hyperparathyroidism, we assessed calcium deficiency, spinal bone density, by quantitative computed tomography, and serum PTH in three groups of osteoporotic subjects. Two of the three groups had been treated with fluoride and calcium (at least 1500 mg/day) for 32 +/- 19 months. Group 1 consisted of 16 fluoride-treated subjects who had shown rapid increases in spinal bone density (+ 3.8 +/- 2.6 mg/cm2 month), group II consisted of 10 fluoride-treated subjects who had shown decreases or only slow increases in spinal bone density (-0.05 +/- 0.6 mg/cm3 month), and group III consisted of 10 age-matched untreated osteoporotic controls. Calcium deficiency was assessed by measurement of calcium retention after calcium infusion. The results of our studies showed that 1) 94% of the subjects in Group I were calcium deficient compared with only 30% in groups II and III (P < 0.01 for each); 2) the subjects in group I retained more calcium (79%) than the subjects in group II (60%, P < 0.001) or the subjects in group III (64%, P < 0.005); 3) calcium retention was proportional to serum PTH (r = 0.37, n = 36, P < 0.03); and 4) calcium retention was proportional to the (previous) fluoride-dependent increase in quantitative computed tomography spinal bone density (in groups I and II, r = 0.48, n = 26, P < 0.02). To test the hypothesis that the calcium deficiency and the secondary hyperparathyroidism that were associated with the positive response to fluoride would respond to concomitant calcitriol treatment, a subgroup of 7 calcium-deficient subjects were selected from group I and treated with calcitriol (plus fluoride and calcium) for an average of 7 months. The calcitriol therapy reduced the calcium deficit in all 7 subjects, decreasing calcium retention from 80% to 62% (P < 0.02), and decreasing PTH from 50 to 28 pg/mL (P < 0.02). Together, these data indicate that fluoride-treated osteoporotic subjects may develop calcium deficiency in proportion to the effect of fluoride to increase bone formation, and this calcium deficit is responsive to calcitriol therapy.