From the Guidelines
The normal value range for magnesium in adults is typically 1.3 to 2.2 mEq/L, as defined by the American Heart Association guidelines for cardiopulmonary resuscitation and emergency cardiovascular care 1. This range is crucial in determining the presence of hypomagnesemia or hypermagnesemia, which can have significant effects on the body.
- Hypomagnesemia, defined as a serum magnesium concentration <1.3 mEq/L, can cause symptoms like muscle cramps, fatigue, and irregular heartbeat, while
- hypermagnesemia, defined as a serum magnesium concentration >2.2 mEq/L, may lead to weakness, low blood pressure, and cardiac complications. Magnesium levels should be monitored in patients with certain conditions like kidney disease, alcoholism, malabsorption disorders, or those taking medications like diuretics or proton pump inhibitors that can affect magnesium balance, as stated in the guidelines for parenteral nutrition 1. It is also important to note that magnesium toxicity can occur in patients with renal dysfunction and as an iatrogenic overdose possible in pregnant women receiving magnesium for preterm labor, with magnesium levels of 2.5 to 5 mmol/L manifesting as prolonged PR, QRS, and QT intervals, and severely elevated levels of 6 to 10 mmol/L resulting in atrioventricular nodal conduction block, bradycardia, hypotension, and cardiac arrest 1. Dietary sources of magnesium include green leafy vegetables, nuts, seeds, and whole grains. The most recent and highest quality study, published in 2017, supports the importance of monitoring magnesium levels in hospitalized patients with moderate and severe imbalances of potassium or magnesium to prevent or intervene for lethal cardiac rhythms 1.
From the FDA Drug Label
In such cases, the serum magnesium level is usually below the lower limit of normal (1.5 to 2.5 mEq/L) The normal value range for magnesium is 1.5 to 2.5 mEq/L 2.
From the Research
Normal Value Ranges for Magnesium
- The normal value range for magnesium is currently not standardized, with different institutions and laboratories using varying reference ranges 3.
- A proposed lower reference value for serum magnesium is 0.85 mmol/L (2.07 mg/dL; 1.7 mEq/L) to prevent the inclusion of patients with chronic latent magnesium deficit (CLMD) 3.
- This proposed reference range is based on the fact that current serum magnesium reference ranges may underestimate hypomagnesemia diagnosis, as they are often based on "normal" populations that may include individuals with CLMD 3.
- Magnesium is an essential mineral with many functions in the human body, including muscle contraction, blood pressure regulation, and nerve transmission, and imbalances in magnesium status can result in various disorders 4, 5.
- Hypomagnesemia, or low magnesium status, has been associated with several chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease, type-2 diabetes, and migraine headaches 4, 5.
- The importance of magnesium in human health highlights the need for standardized reference ranges to accurately diagnose and manage magnesium status 3, 5.