The relationship between calcium intake and pregnancy-induced hypertension: Up-to-date evidence

BELIZÁN, JOSÉM.; VILLAR, JOSÉ; REPKE, JOHN

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF OBSTETRICS AND GYNECOLOGY

MOSBY-ELSEVIER

Año: 1988 vol. 158 p. 898 - 902

0002-9378

In 1980 we pointed to a relationship between calcium intake and pregnancy-induced hypertension. The original epidemiologic observations showed an inverse association between calcium intake and incidence of eclampsia after adjusting by several confounding factors. A series of recent randomized clinical trials have demonstrated a reduction in blood pressure with calcium supplementation in animals, in healthy and mildly hypertensive subjects, and in pregnant women. It is hypothesized that parathyroid hormone plays a role since it is affected by calcium intake and can partially regulate the concentration of free cytosolic ionized calcium, thus triggering smooth muscle contraction. Randomized clinical trials showing a reduction in the incidence of pregnancy-induced hypertension with calcium supplementation have not as yet been published. However, preliminary observations appear to support this hypothsis. © 1988.