title: Vitamin D therapy.
abstract: 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.
authors.affiliation: 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.
authors.forename: Jordan L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Geller
authors.forename: John S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Adams
mesh_terms: 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
chemical_list: D050071:Bone Density Conservation Agents; D014807:Vitamin D; C104450:25-hydroxyvitamin D