Serum Calcium and Risk of Sudden Cardiac Arrest in the General Population

Abstract Objective To evaluate the potential role of low serum Ca levels in the occurrence of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) in the community. Patients and Methods We compared 267 SCA cases [177 (66%) men] and 445 controls [314 (71%) men] from a large population-based study (catchment population ∼1 million individuals) in the US Northwest from February 1, 2002, through December 31, 2015. Patients were included if their age was 18 years or older with available creatinine clearance (CrCl) and serum electrolyte levels for analyses to enable adjustment for renal function. For cases, creatinine clearance and electrolyte levels were required to be measured within 90 days of the SCA event. Results Cases of SCA had higher proportions of blacks [31 (12%) vs 14 (3%); P P P P Conclusion Lower serum Ca levels were independently associated with an increased risk of SCA in the community.