Low serum phosphate?

[Periperipissoff]

Recently had bloods as gp suspected i am perimenopausal but wanted to cancel anything else out.

All came back fine apart from a bone related one - serum phosphate which was 0.69. The normal range started at 0.80 so not hugely low but low enough to trigger a repeat and a vit d test. Waiting for results.

Do I need to be worried? 0.3 is coma level apparently 😕 I feel generally fine apart from whats likely peri symptoms (the usual list of 50+ symptoms 🙄)

Apparently low phosphate can be connected to kidneys but I had a ct scan in Nov for something else that picked up no issues with kidneys, and an ultrasound a month ago for irregular bleeding and they checked my kidneys then (standard in that clinic) and kidney function bloods all fine 🤔

I don't eat great, i regularly skip meals because I just forget to eat. And I probably spend max 1.5 hours outside every week 🧛‍♀️

Dr Google says this can be a common incidental finding? Anyone else had low phosphate? do I need to pack a hospital bag just incase 😬

low phosphate on community bloods is so
common as to be essentially normal ime. It degrades in the
tube on the way to the hospital lab so given bloods taken at GP may take 8+ hours to get to lab then it happens all
the time. If calcium levels and renal blood tests (urea/creatinine) all ok I wouldn’t pay much attention to it. Checking vitamin D probably sensible though. (GP for 20+ years and have never seen a worrying isolated low phosphate!)

Ah thank you so much 🙏 tests have been first thing so will have been sat around for a while.

Everything else was spot on just this one out of range.

Ironically I'd cut right down on dairy and meat in general and I used to enjoy the odd cola/dr pepper (ok I had a can every day as a little treat 😬) and stopped those to try and be healthier where I can and they were probably the three main sources of phosphate in my diet according to Google. Go figure!

Hope you don't mind another q....but do you GPs hate it when people come in saying they've Googled something? I've found in the past when I've googled a symptom it will always come back with Certain Death and it gets me in a bit of a tizz.

My mums approach seems good - wait two weeks and if pain/spot/sensation etc. still there then see GP and never Google 😃

Not at all -it makes my job easier as if I know what you’re worrying about I can either reassure or investigate. I would say that Google/internet has massively ramped up
healtb anxiety in the past 20y though. People come in panicking about very short lived symptoms and everyone’s first thought is ‘cancer’ A lot of GP HAS to be watch and wait- we can’t investigate everything instantly or the genuine cancers etc would never get to the top of the list (plus potential harms from the investigations themselves eg X-rays). Many symptoms aren’t necessarily worrying if self limiting but might become so if they don’t settle or respond to treatment as expected. Obviously some symptoms are red flags and need immediate action and a lot are somewhere in a grey area in between.
Hope you get your perimenopausal symptoms sorted though!

Thank you, appreciate you replying and putting my mind at ease ☺️

Sure I'll get peri stuff sorted, now I know the irregular bleeding wasn't due to anything worrying I can put up with the other 49 symptoms for now 🤣

Just thought I'd update for anyone in the same position and a bit worried - my level is now up to 0.82 so only just over the low end of normal but normal all the same! I've put it down to taking high strength Vit D supplements for a few weeks and going back to the odd can of coke and dairy 😃

Vit d test not back yet, I won't be surprised if its still low but I'm not worried I'm going to crap out a kidney or slip into a coma anymore👍

@Periperipissoff - I'm in a similar position. Am 34 and had a load of blood tests. All came back fine apart from phosphate. I used to take vitamin d supplements but stopped after I had kia as I kept forgetting. How long did it take for your levels to increase back up to normal range after taking supplements? Just wondering when to book the blood tests again.