Social Disadvantage Is Associated With Lower Vitamin D Levels in Older People and There Is No Surrogate for Its Measurement

• Main Authors: Adrian H. Heald DM, Simon G. Anderson PhD, Jonathan J. Scargill MSc, Andrea Short PhD, David Holland BA, Adnan Khan MD, Anthony A. Fryer PhD, Rachelle P. Donn PhD, Mark Livingston PhD
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: SAGE Publishing 2017-03-01
• Series: Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1177/2333721417697843

Introduction: There is increasing evidence concerning adverse health consequences of low vitamin D levels. We determined whether there is any surrogate for measuring vitamin D in people older than 70 years and the relation between index of multiple deprivation (IMD) and vitamin D levels. Methods: Blood samples from 241 patients were included in this analysis. Concurrent measurements for 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D), parathyroid hormone (PTH), and bone profile are reported. Results: The prevalence of total vitamin D insufficiency/deficiency (defined as total vitamin D <50 nmol/L) was 57.5% overall. Even for patients with vitamin D deficiency, a significant proportion had PTH, normal calcium, phosphate, and alkaline phosphatase levels. For patients with vitamin D <25 nmol/L, 62.7% had a PTH within reference range, 83.1% had normal serum-adjusted calcium, 80.6% had normal phosphate, and 85.1% had a normal serum alkaline phosphatase. With increasing quintiles of IMD, there was a 22% increased risk of vitamin D deficiency/insufficiency from quintiles 1 to 5, in age- and sex-adjusted logistic regression models (odds ratio [OR] = 1.22, 95% confidence interval [1.01, 1.47]; p = .034). Conclusion: No other parameter is currently adequate for screening for vitamin D deficiency in older people. A higher IMD is associated with lower vitamin D levels in older people.