What Researchers Did
Researchers described the case of a 46-year-old morbidly obese woman who developed painful leg ulcers due to calciphylaxis after significant weight loss and with vitamin D deficiency.
What They Found
A 46-year-old woman developed painful leg ulcers diagnosed as calciphylaxis after losing 102 kg in one year, despite having normal kidney function. Her vitamin D levels were very low at 14 ng/mL, and her parathyroid hormone was elevated at 241 pg/mL. The ulcers did not improve with daily hyperbaric oxygen or other initial treatments, but healed completely after vitamin D was normalized and pamidronate infusion was given.
Canadian Relevance
No direct Canadian connection identified.
Study Limitations
As a case report, this study describes the experience of only one patient, meaning its findings cannot be applied broadly to all individuals with calciphylaxis.