Calcium Blood Level Elevation After Atorvastatin Initiation in a Patient With Hyperparathyroidism

TL;DR

A patient with high calcium levels experienced a further rise in calcium after starting atorvastatin, suggesting a possible rare side effect.

Contribution

The paper reports a rare case linking atorvastatin to elevated calcium levels in a patient with hyperparathyroidism.

Findings

Stopping atorvastatin led to a decrease in the patient's calcium levels.

Reintroducing atorvastatin caused calcium levels to rise again, suggesting a drug-related effect.

The patient remained asymptomatic despite elevated calcium levels.

Abstract

Atorvastatin is a very common medication used for lowering blood cholesterol levels. The drug has known adverse effects, but an elevation in calcium levels is not listed as one of them. We report a 52-year-old man with hyperparathyroidism and hypercholesterolemia, who, under treatment with atorvastatin, developed an additional rise in calcium levels. He was asymptomatic, and during the investigation of his hypercalcemia, a drug adverse effect was suspected. Therefore, atorvastatin therapy was stopped, and calcium levels dropped as a result. Subsequent readministration of atorvastatin and its cessation produced similar results. While hypercalcemia is not listed as a common adverse effect of atorvastatin, we introduce such a phenomenon along with possible underlying mechanisms. Although our patient was asymptomatic, hypercalcemia can be a dangerous condition, especially in a population where the initial calcium levels are already elevated.

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