High prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency in a low income peri-urban community in Karachi.
OBJECTIVE
To determine the frequency of vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency in a low-income peri-urban population.


METHODS
The cross-sectional study was conducted in a low-income, unplanned settlement in Karachi, and comprised apparently healthy adults who were recruited randomly with informed consent. Serum levels of 25-hydroxy vitamin D were measured using a kit obtained from Roche Diagnostics. One-way analysis of variance and logistic regression were used for statistical analysis.


RESULTS
Of the 858 subjects, 507(59%) were females and 351(41%) males (age range: 18-60 years). Prevalence estimates of vitamin D deficiency (<20ng/ml) and insufficiency (20.0-29.9ng/ml) were found to be 501(58.4%) and 269(31.4%), respectively. Odds ratio of vitamin D deficiency was significantly higher in females compared to males after adjusting for education and smoking status (p=0.001).


CONCLUSIONS
High prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among females in one of the peri-urban areas points towards a public health problem which requires attention of the medical community.
Department of Community Health Sciences, Aga Khan University, Pakistan.
Naseema
N
Mehboobali
Department of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Aga Khan University, Pakistan.
Saleem Perwaiz
SP
Iqbal
Ministry of Health Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Muhammad Perwaiz
MP
Iqbal
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010154:Pakistan / Q000453:epidemiology; D011203:Poverty; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D014505:Urban Population; D014808:Vitamin D Deficiency / Q000453:epidemiology*
Vitamin D deficiency, Urban population, Socioeconomic factors.