A longitudinal study of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D and intact parathyroid hormone levels indicate the importance of vitamin D and calcium homeostasis regulation in multiple sclerosis

What Was Tested

The paper reports a study of Parathyroid Hormone (PTH 1-84) in the context of multiple sclerosis, published as a randomized controlled trial.

To compare regulation of vitamin D and calcium homeostasis between patients with MS and healthy controls.

To study the correlation of parameters of vitamin D metabolism with MS activity.

Why It Was Studied

There are no previous longitudinal studies of vitamin D in MS.

Who Took Part

The age groups tagged for this paper are adults, both men and women.

The researchers measured 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D), parathyroid hormone (PTH), calcium, phosphate, magnesium, chloride, alkaline phosphatase, albumin and thyroid stimulating hormone in serum every 3 months and at the time of relapse over 1 year in 23 patients with MS and in 23 healthy controls.

How the Study Was Run

The design is described as randomized.

Random assignment meant chance, not the researchers, decided who got Parathyroid Hormone (PTH 1-84) and who got the comparison, which limits bias.

The timeline in the abstract includes 1 year.

MRI burden of disease and T2 activity were assessed every 6 months.

What Was Measured

Topics PubMed links to this paper include Adjuvants, Immunologic, Calcium, Disability Evaluation, Homeostasis, Hypocalcemia, Interferon beta-1a and Interferon-beta.

What This Means in Plain Language

The paper is a randomized study of Parathyroid Hormone (PTH 1-84) in people with multiple sclerosis over 1 year.

Results are reported in around 8 sentences of the abstract; we leave them to the paper itself rather than summarise them.

The publication is from 2008 (Journal of neurology, neurosurgery, and psychiatry), a journal based in England.

More context: the Parathyroid Hormone (PTH 1-84) compound page, Multiple sclerosis research.