title: Vitamin D Status: A Different Story in the Very Young versus the Very Old Romanian Patients.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  In Romania (latitude 48°15'N to 43°40'N), vitamin D supplementation is common practice mostly in infants 0-1 year old. No published information is available regarding epidemiological data on vitamin D status in the Romanian population for a wide age range and geographical territory. In this context, we aimed to evaluate the seasonal and age variation of vitamin D status in a large Romanian population.
  
  
  METHODS
  6631 individuals from across Romania had performed 7544 vitamin D assessments (2012-2014) in a chain of private laboratories. Vitamin D (25-hydroxyvitamin D2 and 25-hydroxyvitamin D3) was measured using High Performance Liquid Chromatography. Vitamin D levels were classified as severe deficiency<10 ng/mL, deficiency 10-20 ng/mL, insufficiency 21-29 ng/mL, sufficiency ≥ 30 ng/mL and potentially harmful>100 ng/ml.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Male to female ratio was 1:2.9. Age ranged from 0 to 85 years. Mean vitamin D levels increased from April (26.3n g/ml) to September (35.6 ng/ml) and decreased from October (33.5 ng/ml) to March (24.4 ng/ml). Overall 40% had sufficient vitamin D, while the rest were insufficient 33%, deficient 22%, severely deficient 4% and 1% potentially harmful (of them 81% under 1 year old). Males compared to females showed higher percentages of sufficiency (47% vs. 38%). Children 0- 2 years presented the highest percentage of vitamin D sufficiency (77%). Lowest percentages (21%) of sufficiency were in people 80-84 years.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In Romania, suboptimal vitamin D levels are common (59%), especially in older age, wintertime and in women. Vitamin D supplementation would be most warranted from January to April in the Romanian population. 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels > 100 ng/ml were relatively prevalent in children 0-1 year old (17.3%). This was attributed to supplementation errors and the fact that high-risk individuals were more likely to visit for medical check-up. Nonetheless, it stresses the need to increase awareness of the importance of preventing Vitamin D supplementation administration errors in the young.
authors.affiliation: Genetics Department, University of Medicine and Pharmacy "Victor Babeș", Timișoara, Romania.
authors.forename: Adela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chirita-Emandi
authors.affiliation: Ginecology Department, University of Medicine and Pharmacy "Gr. T. Popa", Iași, Romania.
authors.forename: Demetra
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Socolov
authors.affiliation: Anatomy Department, University of Medicine and Pharmacy "Victor Babeș", Timișoara, Romania.
authors.forename: Carmen
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Haivas
authors.affiliation: Bioclinica Laboratoarele, SA, Timișoara, Romania.
authors.forename: Anca
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Calapiș
authors.affiliation: Genetics Department, University of Medicine and Pharmacy "Victor Babeș", Timișoara, Romania.
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gheorghiu
authors.affiliation: Genetics Department, University of Medicine and Pharmacy "Victor Babeș", Timișoara, Romania; Genetics Department, Clinical Emergency Hospital for Children "Louis Țurcanu", Timișoara, Romania.
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Puiu
mesh_terms: D015652:25-Hydroxyvitamin D 2 / Q000097:blood; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002112:Calcifediol / Q000097:blood; D002118:Calcium / Q000097:blood; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010281:Parathyroid Hormone / Q000097:blood; D012383:Romania / Q000453:epidemiology; D012621:Seasons; D014807:Vitamin D / Q000097:blood*; D014808:Vitamin D Deficiency / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D010281:Parathyroid Hormone; D014807:Vitamin D; D015652:25-Hydroxyvitamin D 2; D002112:Calcifediol; D002118:Calcium