Vitamin D therapy.
The fat-soluble vitamin D prohormones, ergocalciferol (vitamin D2) and cholecalciferol (vitamin D3), are essential for the efficient intestinal absorption of calcium and phosphate and the subsequent mineralization of bone. Inadequate vitamin D leads to chronic secondary hyperparathyroidism and osteoporosis. The increasing prevalence of osteoporosis has paralleled a pandemic of vitamin D insufficiency. Based on observational and prospective trials with clinical end points, the standards for vitamin D sufficiency have been recently revised. All patients with osteopenia or osteoporosis should be monitored with a reliable assay to maintain serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels more than 32 ng/dL. Patients who are taking bisphosphonates and those with coexisting primary hyperparathyroidism are not exempt from taking supplemental vitamin D.
Geller
Jordan L
JL
Orthopaedic Hospital Research Center, UCLA-Orthopaedic Hospital Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Mail Stop 735822, 615 Charles E. Young Drive South, Room 410E, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
Adams
John S
JS
D050071:Bone Density Conservation Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D006801:Humans; D010024:Osteoporosis / Q000097:blood / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D014807:Vitamin D / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000097:blood / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D014808:Vitamin D Deficiency / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications
D050071:Bone Density Conservation Agents; D014807:Vitamin D; C104450:25-hydroxyvitamin D