Stroke, Vol 23, 532-538, Copyright © 1992 by American Heart Association
JD Peuler and RL Schelper
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Repeated demonstration of an antihypertensive
effect of high oral calcium in stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats
led us to determine whether it also protects such rats from premature
mortality and stroke-related lesions. METHODS: Female stroke- prone rats
(11-13 per diet) were fed high- and low-calcium (2.0% and 0.4%,
respectively) diets with both high and low salt (7.0% and 0.3%,
respectively) content from age 4 weeks until spontaneous death. In addition
to life span, other variables measured included blood pressures, plasma
chemistries, and histological characterization of stroke-related lesions.
RESULTS: Life span was increased from 51 +/- 4 to 68 +/- 1 weeks (p less
than 0.05) by high versus low oral calcium in rats fed high-salt diets; it
was further increased to greater than or equal to 82 weeks (p less than
0.05) in rats fed low-salt (+/- added calcium) diets. As seen previously,
high oral calcium attenuated salt- induced hypertension but did not affect
blood pressure in rats fed low- salt diets. High versus low oral calcium
exerted contrasting effects (p less than 0.05) on brain lesions
(hemorrhages and infarctions) in rats fed high-salt diets, decreasing
lesion size (242 +/- 21 versus 712 +/- 276 microns per rat [diameters seen
in histological sections]) but increasing lesion number (8.9 +/- 2.4 versus
3.4 +/- 2.2 per rat); it exerted little influence on the few brain lesions
that appeared in rats fed low-salt diets. CONCLUSIONS: High oral calcium
may protect stroke- prone hypertensive rats from early salt-induced
mortality at least partially by decreasing severity (size) of
stroke-related lesions, an effect which may relate to decreased blood
pressure. However, this protection may be limited by increased number
(incidence) of such lesions, an effect which suggests that high oral
calcium may increase the number of brain vessels susceptible to
stroke-related injury independent of change in blood pressure.
ARTICLES
Partial protection from salt-induced stroke and mortality by high oral calcium in hypertensive rats
Department of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City.
This article has been cited by other articles:
 |
|
 |
|
  B. H. Buck, D. S. Liebeskind, J. L. Saver, O. Y. Bang, S. Starkman, L. K. Ali, D. Kim, J. P. Villablanca, N. Salamon, S. W. Yun, et al. Association of Higher Serum Calcium Levels With Smaller Infarct Volumes in Acute Ischemic Stroke Arch Neurol, September 1, 2007; 64(9): 1287 - 1291. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 B. Ovbiagele, D. S. Liebeskind, S. Starkman, N. Sanossian, D. Kim, T. Razinia, and J. L. Saver Are elevated admission calcium levels associated with better outcomes after ischemic stroke? Neurology, July 11, 2006; 67(1): 170 - 173. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 H. Iso, M. J. Stampfer, J. E. Manson, K. Rexrode, C. H. Hennekens, G. A. Colditz, F. E. Speizer, and W. C. Willett Prospective Study of Calcium, Potassium, and Magnesium Intake and Risk of Stroke in Women Stroke, September 1, 1999; 30(9): 1772 - 1779. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 J. D. Peuler Opposing adrenergic actions of intravenous metformin on arterial pressure in female spontaneously hypertensive rats Cardiovasc Res, July 1, 1999; 43(1): 237 - 247. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 A. Ascherio, E. B. Rimm, M. A. Hernan, E. L. Giovannucci, I. Kawachi, M. J. Stampfer, and W. C. Willett Intake of Potassium, Magnesium, Calcium, and Fiber and Risk of Stroke Among US Men Circulation, September 22, 1998; 98(12): 1198 - 1204. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|