Calcium supplementation for postmenopausal women has fallen out of favor in recent years in the wake of reports of increased risk for vascular events. A new study raises fresh concerns about calcium supplementation and dementia in women suffering from cerebrovascular disease. Swedish and British researchers examined a cohort of women in Gothenburg, Sweden, including 700 dementia-free women 70-92 years of age. About 100 women were treated with calcium supplements. Of those, calcium supplementation was associated with the development of dementia in women with a history of stroke (odds ratio [OR], 6.77; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.36-33.75; P = 0.020) or presence of white matter lesions on CT scan (OR, 2.99; 95% CI, 1.28-6.96; P = 0.011), but not in groups without these conditions. The authors acknowledged that this is a small observational study, but their data suggest that calcium supplementation may increase the risk of developing dementia in elderly women with cerebrovascular disease. (Published online Aug. 17, 2016. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1212/WNL.0000000000003111 Neurology 10.1212/WNL.000000000000311)
While derived from a small sample, data suggest calcium supplementation may increase the risk of developing dementia in elderly women with cerebrovascular disease.
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