COMPARISON OF SERUM CALCIUM LEVELS BEFORE AND AFTER HEMODIALYSIS

Abstract

Objective: To compare the serum calcium levels before and after haemodialysis in patients with end-stage renal disease. Study Design: A cross sectional study. Place and Duration of the Study: Department of Nephrology, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, Lahore, Pakistan, from 18 February to 18 June 2026. Methodology: A total of 60 patients aged 30 to 75 years with end-stage renal disease receiving maintenance haemodialysis were included. Serum calcium was measured immediately before and after each haemodialysis session by using the Arsenazo III colorimetric method. Data were analysed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 26. Paired t-test was used to compare the mean serum calcium levels before and after haemodialysis. Results: The mean age of the patients was 53.77 ± 9.36 years, while the mean body mass index was 23.88 ± 3.55 kg/m². Males were 44 (73.3%) and females were 16 (26.7%). The mean duration of end-stage renal disease was 32.02 ± 15.62 months and mean dialysis duration was 4.12 ± 0.33 hours. Mean serum calcium level increased significantly from 8.17 ± 0.25 mg/dL before haemodialysis to 8.53 ± 0.34 mg/dL after haemodialysis (mean difference -0.37, 95% confidence interval -0.42 to -0.32; p<0.001). Significant rise in serum calcium was also observed in all stratified groups (p<0.001). Conclusion: Serum calcium level increased significantly after haemodialysis in patients with end-stage renal disease. This improvement was seen in all patient groups, showing that haemodialysis has an important role in correcting calcium imbalance.