> news:478E6D44.51054201@sonic.net...

> > Quoting from:
> >http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/bmj.39440.525752.BEv1

> > Vascular events in healthy older women receiving calcium
> > supplementation: randomised controlled trial

> > Mark J Bolland, research fellow1, P Alan Barber, senior
> > lecturer, Robert N Doughty, associate professor, Barbara
> > Mason, research officer, Anne Horne, research fellow,
> > Ruth Ames, research officer, Gregory D Gamble, research
> > fellow, Andrew Grey, associate professor, Ian R Reid,
> > professor

> > Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medical and Health
> > Sciences, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019,
> > Auckland, New Zealand

> > OBJECTIVE: To determine the effect of calcium
> > supplementation on myocardial infarction, stroke,
> > and sudden death in healthy postmenopausal women.

> > DESIGN: Randomised, placebo controlled trial.

> > SETTING: Academic medical centre in an urban setting
> > in New Zealand.

> > PARTICIPANTS: 1471 postmenopausal women (mean age 74):
> > 732 were randomised to calcium supplementation and 739
> > to placebo.

> > MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Adverse cardiovascular events
> > over five years: death, sudden death, myocardial
> > infarction, angina, other chest pain, stroke,
> > transient ischaemic attack, and a composite end point
> > of myocardial infarction, stroke, or sudden death.

> > RESULTS: Myocardial infarction was more commonly
> > reported in the calcium group than in the placebo
> > group (45 events in 31 women v 19 events in 14 women,
> > P=0.01). The composite end point of myocardial
> > infarction, stroke, or sudden death was also more
> > common in the calcium group (101 events in 69 women
> > v 54 events in 42 women, P=0.008). After adjudication
> > myocardial infarction remained more common in the
> > calcium group (24 events in 21 women v 10 events
> > in 10 women, relative risk 2.12, 95% confidence
> > interval 1.01 to 4.47). For the composite end point
> > 61 events were verified in 51 women in the calcium
> > group and 36 events in 35 women in the placebo group
> > (relative risk 1.47, 0.97 to 2.23). When unreported
> > events were added from the national database of
> > hospital admissions in New Zealand the relative risk
> > of myocardial infarction was 1.49 (0.86 to 2.57) and
> > that of the composite end point was 1.21 (0.84 to
> > 1.74). The respective rate ratios were 1.67 (95%
> > confidence intervals 0.98 to 2.87) and 1.43 (1.01 to
> > 2.04); event rates: placebo 16.3/1000 person years,
> > calcium 23.3/1000 person years. For stroke
> > (including unreported events) the relative risk
> > was 1.37 (0.83 to 2.28) and the rate ratio was 1.45
> > (0.88 to 2.49).

> > CONCLUSION: Calcium supplementation in healthy
> > postmenopausal women is associated with upward
> > trends in cardiovascular event rates. This
> > potentially detrimental effect should be balanced
> > against the likely benefits of calcium on bone.

> I believe that if calcium is not given with magnesium in the correct 3:1
> ratio, and if either excessive or even inadequate vitamin D levels are not
> maintained, then there is the possiblity of calicium plaques developing
> within arteries. However, the risk:benefit trade-off of calcium
> supplemenatation favors the prevention and treatment of osteopoorosis, which
> has a significant mortality of its own.