Effect of potassium supplementation on vascular function: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
Level 1 - systematic review of randomized trials
Meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials
PubMed 27865190 · doi:10.1016/j.ijcard.2016.10.119
What was done
Authors conducted a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials identified from PubMed through April 2016 examining the effect of potassium supplementation on vascular function. Outcomes included pulse wave velocity (PWV), augmentation index (AI), pulse pressure (PP), flow-mediated dilatation (FMD), glycerol trinitrate responses (GTN), and intercellular cell adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1). Effect sizes were pooled as standardized mean differences (SMD) with 95% confidence intervals across 7 randomized controlled trials with 409 participants, using doses ranging from 40 to 150 mmol/day and durations from 6 days to 12 months.
What was found
Potassium supplementation significantly improved pulse pressure (SMD -0.280, 95% CI -0.493 to -0.067, p=0.010). No statistically significant effects were observed for other vascular measures: PWV (SMD -0.342, 95% CI -1.123 to 0.440, p=0.391), AI (SMD -0.114, 95% CI -0.282 to 0.054, p=0.184), FMD (SMD 0.278, 95% CI -0.321 to 0.877, p=0.363), GTN (SMD -0.009, 95% CI -0.949 to 0.930, p=0.984), and ICAM-1 (SMD -0.238, 95% CI -0.720 to 0.244, p=0.333).
Why it matters
Potassium supplementation may help reduce pulse pressure, but current evidence does not demonstrate improvements in wider measures of arterial stiffness or endothelial function.
Limits
The total sample size was small (7 studies, 409 participants), the search was limited to PubMed, and there was substantial heterogeneity in intervention duration (6 days to 12 months) and potassium dosage (40 to 150 mmol/day).
Cited by
- partial Potassium helps maintain arterial flexibility and functions in the sodium-potassium pump in nerves and muscles.