Calcium is one of the important minerals in human body. About 1% of the calcium in the body is in blood. The rest is stored in bones and teeth. Having the right amount of calcium in blood is essential for nerves, muscles, and heart to work properly. It assists blood vessels to move blood throughout the body and releases hormones that affect many bodily functions.

What is a Calcium Blood Test?

A calcium blood test measures the quantity of calcium in the blood. High or low levels of calcium in the blood can be a sign of a variety of medical conditions, such as bone disease, kidney disease, thyroid disease, parathyroid disorders, and other conditions.

Why do I need a calcium blood test?

Your health care provider may ask this test to diagnose or monitor diseases that can affect your blood calcium or if you have symptoms of abnormal calcium levels.

How to prepare for the calcium test?

Medications that can cause high measurements in this test include calcium salts (in antacids or nutritional supplements), vitamin D, thiazide diuretics, lithium and thyroxine. Consult your doctor about the need to discontinue the drugs that may affect this test.

Normal Values:

8.5 to 10.2 mg/dL is the normal value of calcium test.

What does the result mean?

Higher-than-normal levels may indicate:

• Hyperparathyroidism
• Metastatic bone tumor
• Milk-alkali syndrome
• Multiple myeloma
• Paget’s disease
• Sarcoidosis
• Tumors producing a PTH-like substance
• Vitamin D intoxication
• Excessive calcium intake
• Prolonged immobilization
• Hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid gland)
• Addison’s disease (underactive adrenal gland)
• Thiazide diuretics
• Lithium
• HIV/AIDS

Lower-than-normal levels may indicate:

• Hypoparathyroidism
• Malabsorption (inadequate nutrients absorption from the intestinal tract)
• Osteomalacia
• Pancreatitis
• Renal failure
• Rickets and vitamin D deficiency
• Liver disease (decreased albumin production)
• Low serum magnesium