title: The burden of vitamin D deficiency in a mediterranean country without a policy of food fortification.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Vitamin D deficiency is a public healthcare issue and its correction is increasingly regarded as a cornerstone of preventive medicine.
  
  
  METHODS
  We designed a retrospective observational study to clearly define the burden of total vitamin D (25-hydroxyvitamin D) deficiency in a supposedly healthy population of outpatients residing in two regions (Emilia Romagna and Veneto) of Northern Italy.
  
  
  RESULTS
  25-hydroxyvitamin D results were available for a total number of 5,096 outpatients in the two centers. The median value of 25-hydroxyvitamin D was 60 nmol/L, and was higher in women than in men (62 nmol/L versus 56 nmol/L; p&lt;0.001). The rate of 25-hydroxyvitamin D deficiency was 36%, and was marginally but significantly higher in men than in women (40% versus 35%; p=0.003). A significant variation in the rate of 25-hydroxyvitamin D deficiency was found throughout different age ranges, exhibiting a significant increase in the elderly.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results of this large observational study show that the burden of 25-hydroxyvitamin D deficiency in two regions of a Mediterranean country without a policy of food fortification is as high as 36%, and this evidence represents a background for healthcare preventive measures aimed at reducing the prevalence of this condition in the general population. (www.actabiomedica.it).
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Clinical Chemistry and Hematology, Academic Hospital of Parma.. glippi@ao.pr.it.
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lippi
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nouvenne
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ticinesi
authors.forename: Patrizia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bonelli
authors.forename: Gian Luca
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Salvagno
authors.forename: Gianfranco
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Cervellin
authors.forename: Gian Cesare
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Guidi
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D017281:Cost of Illness; D005260:Female; D005527:Food, Fortified; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018673:Nutrition Policy; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D017678:Sex Distribution; D014808:Vitamin D Deficiency / Q000453:epidemiology*; D055815:Young Adult