Clinical effectiveness of calcitriol and calcium gluconate in treating older male patients with osteoporosis

Abstract

Clinical studies on calcitriol in osteoporosis (OP) have been mostly conducted in postmenopausal women, with limited research reported in elderly male patients. In this study, we investigated the effects of combining calcitriol with calcium gluconate for treating OP in elderly men and compared it with calcium gluconate monotherapy to provide insights into the clinical treatment options for OP. A total of 86 elderly male OP patients were included in this study and randomly assigned to control or observation groups in a 1:1 ratio. The control group was given oral calcium gluconate (1.0 g, three times daily), while the observation group was given oral calcitriol capsule (0.25 µg twice daily) and oral calcium gluconate (1.0 g three times daily). The results indicated that treatment with single calcium gluconate for 6 months had minimal impact on the bone mineral density (BMD) of the lumbar spine, total hip and femoral neck, and balance function. In contrast, the combination of calcium gluconate and calcitriol significantly increased BMD and improved patients’ balance function. Both single calcium gluconate treatment and the combination of calcium gluconate and calcitriol affected various bone metabolism and turnover markers to varying degrees, including a decrease in the level of tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase-5b (TRAP-5b) and an increase in the levels of osteocalcin and calcium. Both calcium gluconate and calcitriol affect patients’ bone metabolism and turnover markers to varying degrees. Importantly, the combination of calcium gluconate and calcitriol had a significant effect on these markers compared to calcium gluconate monotherapy, and no significant difference in the incidence of adverse reactions was observed between the two groups during treatment. Calcium gluconate in combination with calcitriol in elderly male patients with OP may increase bone mineral density, improve bone metabolism, enhance bone turnover and maintain a high safety profile.