Conditions: Chronic Kidney Disease Stage 3 and 4
Keywords: CKD Vitamin D
Allocation: RANDOMIZED | Intervention model: PARALLEL
Enrollment: 19
Healthy volunteers: no

Brief summary:
The purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of vitamin D3 versus vitamin D2 in raising vitamin D levels and suppressing parathyroid hormone levels in patients with kidney disease who are not on dialysis.

Detailed description:
Subjects will be randomized and assigned to one of the treatment groups (D2 or D3). Subjects will be dispensed a supply of 1.25 mg cholecalciferol/ergocalciferol tablets, depending on their randomization outcome. The number of pills dispensed and medication instructions will be determined by their 25OHD level and K/DOQI guidelines. Both Study personnel and subject will be blinded to randomization group.

The treatment phase will be 24 weeks in duration with lab visits every 6 weeks. All laboratory specimens will be drawn either at CCF Main hospital labs or at a CCF family Health center lab. Subjects will be have telephone interviews at week 4, 10, 16, 22 and possibly at weeks 28 and 34.

Arms:
arm 1: Patients randomized to take vitamin D2 arm 2: Patient's randomized to take Vitamin D3

Interventions: intervention 1: Ergocalciferol intervention 2: Cholecalciferol
Intervention descriptions: intervention 1: 1.25mg weekly for 12 weeks then once a month for 3 months. or 1.25 weekly for 4 weeks then once a month for 5 months. or 1.25 monthly for 6 months intervention 2: 1.25 weekly for 12 weeks then monthly for 3 months or 1.25 weekly for 4 weeks then monthly for 5 months or 1.25 monthly for 6 months

Protocol document: