The effect on blood pressure of an acute fall in ionized calcium during hemodialysis. A randomized study in two...

Elevating serum ionized calcium levels is known to stabilize blood pressure during and after a hemodialysis session. The data on lowering calcium levels is limited.

This study examined the responses to an acute drop in ionized calcium during a four hour hemodialysis session in two subjects who differed in the presence (patient 1) or absence (patient 2) of anti-hypertensive medication and average weight loss of 4 kg (patient 1) or 2 kgs (patient 2) with each dialysis. Parathyroid hormone (PTH) levels were normal (patient 1) or very high (patient 2). A calcium free dialysate was used and the calcium infusion rate distal to the dialyzer was varied to produce either no change in ionized calcium for 10 dialyses, or a fall of at least 0.2 mmol/l for 10 dialyses. The sequence was randomized and was blinded to the observers and patients.

The fall in ionized calcium was similar in each individual, 0.37 +/- 0.11 and 0.34 +/- 0.05 mmol/l. PTH rose from 8.6 +/- 1.6 to 24.2 +/- 6.6 pmol/l for patient 1 and 144.6 +/- 59.9 to 234.8 +/- 32.3 pmol/l for patient 2: patient 1 showed a fall in blood pressure after dialysis associated with the fall in calcium. This was most pronounced in the upright position whereas there was no change for Patient 2. For Patient 1 standing mean blood pressure post-dialysis was 104 +/- 6 mmHg when the calcium was stable and 94 +/- 10 mmHg with hypocalcemia p <0.01. Mean blood pressure during dialysis was also lower with hypocalcemia 100 +/- 7 versus 92 +/- 9 p <0.05. There were no significant changes in blood pressure for patient 2. Neither of the patients had any symptoms attributable to hypotension or hypocalcemia.

It was concluded that modest falls in ionized calcium were associated with a drop in standing blood pressure only when combined with other factors predisposing to vascular instability. Even so these decreases were small enough to be asymptomatic.