Endocrine Abstracts

Background: Magnesium is the fourth most abundant action in the body and plays an important role in metabolic processes. Association between magnesium deficiency and clinical condition including hypertension, diabetes, insulin resistance, hyperlipidemia, and atherosclerosis. Although magnesium deficiency is associated with a variety of medical conditions, the prevalence of hypo- and hypermagnesemia have not been reported in general population.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on 1558 (754 males and 804 females) with the mean age of 39.9±14.3 years, who were selected by a multistage cluster random sampling method. Serum magnesium level was measured by flame atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The reference range for serum magnesium was 0.75–0.95 mmol/l.

Results: The prevalence of hypomagnesemia was 4.6% (95% CI, 3.6–5.6) in total population. Hypomagnesemia was more prevalent in females (6.0%) compared to males (3.2%), (P<0.01). Prevalence of hypermagnesemia was 12.2% (95% CI, 10.6–13.8) and was more prevalent in males (13.9%) than females (10.6%), (P<0.01).

Conclusion: Our data show a relatively high prevalence of abnormal levels of serum magnesium among general population; which may contribute to the pathophysiology of some diseases.