Vitamin D Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Vitamin D, including details on sources, melanin, benefits, deficiency, supplements, calcium absorption.

Are new vitamin D analogues in renal bone disease superior to calcitriol?

Salusky IB

Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Nephrology, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Box 951752, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA. isalusky@mednet.ucla.edu

Progression of chronic kidney disease is associated with an early reduction in serum calcitriol levels; thus, therapy with calcitriol should be initiated early in the course of chronic kidney disease to prevent the development of secondary hyperparathyroidism. Initial studies demonstrated a potential role of calcitriol in the prevention of growth retardation in children with chronic kidney disease prior to dialysis. But the optimal parathyroid hormone (PTH) levels that will maximize growth response during calcitriol treatment remain to be defined. Therapy with calcitriol has been shown to control the biochemical and skeletal manifestations of secondary hyperparathyroidism, but patients developed hypercalcemia, hyperphosphatemia and adynamic osteodystrophy. Thus, new vitamin D analogues with a lower hypercalcemic response have been developed. Although comparative studies are lacking, current evidence indicates that these new active vitamin D sterols (19-nor-paracalcitol and doxercalciferol) adequately control secondary hyperparathyroidism with minimal changes in serum calcium and phosphorus levels during treatment with calcium-containing binders. The long-term effect of such therapies on the skeleton and the process of vascular calcifications remain to be evaluated.

Published 21 February 2005 in Pediatr Nephrol, 20(3): 393-8.
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