A descriptive cross-sectional study of the prevalence of 25-hydroxyvitamin D deficiency and association with bone markers in a hospitalized population.
Patients with gastrointestinal disease may be in particular risk of hypovitaminosis D because of reduced intestinal uptake or metabolism in the liver. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in several groups of patients with various gastroenterologic diseases compared with patients without any chronic disease. We tested the hypothesis that persons with a gastrointestinal disease are at higher risk of hypovitaminosis D than persons with no chronic disease and whether this group needs special attention regarding their nutrition. We included patients admitted to our department of gastroenterology. The concentration of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D2+D3) was defined as insufficient when less than 50 nmol/L, deficient when less than 25 nmol/L, and severely deficient when less than 12.5 nmol/L. We included 146 patients with a mean age of 55 years (range, 16-93 years). 25(OH)D was sufficient in 47%, insufficient in 29%, deficient in 12%, and severely deficient in 11% of the population. Participants without chronic disease had a significantly higher mean level of 25(OH)D (57 nmol/L) compared to participants with cirrhosis (15 nmol/L, P = .002) and alcoholism (31 nmol/L, P = .003). A linear relationship between 25(OH)D and alkaline phosphatase could be demonstrated (Spearman rho, -0.299; P < .001). Participants with severe 25(OH)D deficiency had higher levels of total alkaline phosphatase (149.5 vs 76 U/L, P = .001) and parathyroid hormone (5.1 vs 2.8 pmol/L; P = .001). We recommend measuring the level of 25(OH)D and parathyroid hormone in patients with chronic diseases, especially alcoholism and cirrhosis.
Department of Endocrinology, Hvidovre Hospital, DK-2650 Hvidovre, Denmark. ulrichbangbang@gmail.com
Ulrich Christian
UC
Bang
Synne
S
Semb
Inge
I
Nordgaard-Lassen
Jens-Erik Beck
JE
Jensen
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000097:blood* / Q000150:complications; D000469:Alkaline Phosphatase / Q000097:blood*; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D001842:Bone and Bones / Q000378:metabolism*; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003718:Denmark / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D005355:Fibrosis / Q000097:blood* / Q000150:complications; D005767:Gastrointestinal Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010281:Parathyroid Hormone / Q000097:blood*; D015995:Prevalence; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D014807:Vitamin D / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000097:blood; D014808:Vitamin D Deficiency / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D055815:Young Adult
D015415:Biomarkers; D010281:Parathyroid Hormone; D014807:Vitamin D; C104450:25-hydroxyvitamin D; D000469:Alkaline Phosphatase