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My 18 Yr Old Son Had Blood Work Done And
Question: My 18 yr old son had blood work done and everything came back perfect. His calcium level came back slightly high. He has been taking men one a days for the last 2 weeks. Cause for concern??
Brief Answer:
Stop the vitamins
Detailed Answer:
Hello, I'm Dr. Branch, thanks for using Ask a Doctor. There are potentially many causes for a high calcium level, including medications such as calcium supplements, an excess of parathyroid hormone, or a genetic condition in which the kidneys do not excrete calcium like normal. A slightly high calcium level is not dangerous but over time can affect multiple organ such as the kidneys and bones, so it is always a good idea to follow up a high calcium level. In your son's case, I would suspect that it may be due to the vitamins he is taking, if calcium is included in it, which it usually would be. I would suggest stopping these vitamins and check the calcium level after about a month to confirm that it has gone back to normal. If it has, you don't need to do anything else. However, if it is still elevated, the next step would be to check a parathyroid hormone level to see if that's elevated at all. If that’s not the cause, the next step would be to do urine studies to see if calcium excretion is abnormal.
I hope that helps, please let me know if you have any other questions about any of that and I would be glad to discuss it with you further.
Stop the vitamins
Detailed Answer:
Hello, I'm Dr. Branch, thanks for using Ask a Doctor. There are potentially many causes for a high calcium level, including medications such as calcium supplements, an excess of parathyroid hormone, or a genetic condition in which the kidneys do not excrete calcium like normal. A slightly high calcium level is not dangerous but over time can affect multiple organ such as the kidneys and bones, so it is always a good idea to follow up a high calcium level. In your son's case, I would suspect that it may be due to the vitamins he is taking, if calcium is included in it, which it usually would be. I would suggest stopping these vitamins and check the calcium level after about a month to confirm that it has gone back to normal. If it has, you don't need to do anything else. However, if it is still elevated, the next step would be to check a parathyroid hormone level to see if that's elevated at all. If that’s not the cause, the next step would be to do urine studies to see if calcium excretion is abnormal.
I hope that helps, please let me know if you have any other questions about any of that and I would be glad to discuss it with you further.
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Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Raju A.T
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