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Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan
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Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan
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Cardiovascular Research Center, Wan Fang Hospital, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan
Taipei Heart Institute, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan
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Vitamin D deficiency is associated with hyperlipidemia, but it remains unclear whether vitamin D supplementation reduces serum lipid levels. The aims of this study were to investigate the associations between increased serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) concentrations and lipid levels and identify the characteristics of people with or without lipid reduction associated with increased 25(OH)D levels. The medical records of 118 individuals (53 men; mean age, 54.4 ± 10.6 years) whose serum 25(OH)D levels increased between 2 consecutive measurements were retrospectively reviewed. People with increased 25(OH)D levels (from 22.7 (17.6–29.2) to 32.1 (25.6–36.8) mg/dL; P < 0.01) had a significant reduction in serum levels of triglycerides (TGs) (from 111.0 (80–164) to 104.5 (73–142) mg/dL; P < 0.01) and total cholesterol (TC) (from 187.5 (155–213) to 181.0 (150–210) mg/dL; P < 0.05). The individuals who responded to vitamin D (≥10% reduction in TG or TC levels) exhibited significantly higher baseline TG and TC levels than those who did not. Only patients with hyperlipidemia (not those without hyperlipidemia) at baseline exhibited significantly reduced TG and TC levels at follow-up. However, increasing serum 25(OH)D concentrations were significantly correlated with decreasing lipid levels in individuals with baseline 25(OH)D levels less than 30 ng/mL and in individuals aged 50–65 years (not in patients younger than 50 years or older than 65 years). In conclusion, increasing serum 25(OH)D concentrations may be potentially helpful for the treatment of hyperlipidemia in people with vitamin D deficiency.
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Previous studies investigating the association of circulating 25-hydroxyvitamin D level with prognosis of prostate cancer yielded controversial results. We conducted a dose–response meta-analysis to elucidate the relationship. PubMed and EMBASE were searched for eligible studies up to July 15, 2018. We performed a dose–response meta-analysis using random-effect model to calculate the summary hazard ratio (HR) and 95% CI of mortality in patients with prostate cancer. Seven eligible cohort studies with 7808 participants were included. The results indicated that higher vitamin D level could reduce the risk of death among prostate cancer patients. The summary HR of prostate cancer-specific mortality correlated with an increment of every 20 nmol/L in circulating vitamin D level was 0.91, with 95% CI 0.87–0.97, P = 0.002. The HR for all-cause mortality with the increase of 20 nmol/L vitamin D was 0.91 (95% CI: 0.84–0.98, P = 0.01). Sensitivity analysis suggested the pooled HRs were stable and not obviously changed by any single study. No evidence of publications bias was observed. This meta-analysis suggested that higher 25-hydroxyvitamin D level was associated with a reduction of mortality in prostate cancer patients and vitamin D is an important protective factor in the progression and prognosis of prostate cancer.
Fondazione Italiana Ricerca sulle Malattie dell’Osso (FIRMO Onlus), Florence, Italy
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Objective
This study aimed to evaluate the association between the endocrine-disrupting chemical, bisphenol A (BPA) on circulating levels of 25-hydroxy vitamin D (25(OD)D) and other vitamin D metabolites in an elderly population in Italy.
Methods
This was a retrospective analysis of the InCHIANTI Biobank in Italy. The association between vitamin D metabolites namely 1,25(OH)D, 25(OH)D, parathyroid hormone (PTH) and BPA levels were evaluated. Multiple regression models were used to examine the association between predictor variables with 1,25(OH)D or 25(OH)D levels.
Results
Samples from 299 individuals aged 72.8 ± 15.7 years were examined. Mean levels of BPA, 1,25(OH)D and 25(OH)D were 351.2 ± 511.6 ng/dL, 43.7 ± 16.9 pg/mL and 20.2 ± 12.1 ng/mL, respectively. One hundred eighty individuals (60.2%) were deficient (<20 ng/mL) in 25(OH)D and this population also presented higher BPA levels (527.9 ± 1289.5 ng/dL vs 86.9 ± 116.8 ng/dL, P < 0.0001). Univariate analysis revealed that BPA levels were negatively correlated with both 1,25(OH)D (r= −0.67, P < 0.0001) and 25(OH)D (r= −0.69, P < 0.0001). Multivariate regression revealed that PTH (β: −0.23, 95% CI: −0.34, −0.13, P < 0.0001) and BPA (β: −0.25, 95% CI: −0.3, −0.19, P < 0.0001) remained significantly associated with 25(OH)D levels while BPA was also associated with 1,25(OH)D levels (β: −0.19, 95% CI: −0.22, −0.15, P < 0.0001). Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis showed that a BPA concentration of >113 ng/dL was the best cut-off to predict individuals deficient in 25(OH)D (area under the curve: 0.87, 95% CI: 0.82–0.90, P < 0.0001).
Conclusion
The strong negative association between BPA and vitamin D in this elderly population warrants further investigation, particularly since this population is already at greatest risk of hypovitaminosis and fracture.
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Research Center in Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine (EPIMED), University of Insubria, Varese, Italy
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Research Center in Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine (EPIMED), University of Insubria, Varese, Italy
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Objective
The aim of this observational study was to clarify the link between vitamin D status and metabolic syndrome (MetS) in people with visceral obesity.
Design and methods
One hundred ninety-six consecutive patients (152 women; mean age 51 ± 13 years) with visceral obesity (mean body weight 103 ± 20 kg, mean waist circumference (WC) 119 ± 13 cm) were enrolled at the Obesity Outpatient Clinic of the University of Insubria in Varese. Anthropometric measurements were recorded. Laboratory tests, including vitamin D (25(OH)D)), fasting blood glucose (FBG), lipid profile, liver and kidney function tests were assessed. Vitamin D status was defined according to the European Society of Endocrinology guidelines, MetS to the 2009 harmonized definition.
Results
An inverse association emerged among 25(OH)D, body mass index (BMI) (P = 0.001) and WC (all P = 0.003). Serum 25(OH)D levels were inversely related to FBG and systolic blood pressure (SBP) (respectively, P = 0.01 and 0.02). Median serum 25(OH)D levels were 13.3 ng/mL (CI 95% 12; 15) in MetS and 16 ng/mL (CI 95% 14; 18) (P = 0.01) in non-MetS patients. Among patients with MetS, lower 25(OH)D concentrations were related to higher risk of hypertension (HT) (odds ratio (OR) 1.7, CI 95%, 0.7;4) and hyperglycemia (IFG)/type 2 diabetes (OR 5.5, CI 95% 2; 14).
Conclusion
Vitamin D status and MetS are inversely correlated in visceral obesity, particularly with regard to glucose homeostasis and BP. More extensive studies are required to investigate the potential for causality.
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Objective
Vitamin D deficiency is associated with increased risks of arterial and venous cardiovascular events. Hypothetically, supplementation with vitamin D may lead to a less prothrombotic phenotype, as measured by global coagulation assays and fibrin clot structure.
Methods
In this prospective cohort study, we enrolled adult outpatients attending the Primary Care Division of the Geneva University Hospitals with a severe vitamin D deficiency (25-hydroxyvitamin-D3 (25-OHD) <25 nmol/L), excluding obese patients or with a recent acute medical event. We evaluated changes in coagulation times, thrombin generation assay, clot formation and clot lysis time, 25-OHD and parathormone before and 1–3 months after cholecalciferol oral supplementation with one-time 300,000 IU then 800 IU daily. Paired t-tests with a two-sided alpha of 0.05 compared absolute mean differences.
Results
The 48 participants had a mean age of 43.8 ± 13.8 years. After supplementation, 25-OHD levels increased from 17.9 ± 4.6 nmol/L to 62.5 ± 20.7 nmol/L 6.4 ± 3.0 weeks after inclusion. Endogenous thrombin potential and thrombin generation peak values both decreased significantly (−95.4 nM × min (95%CI −127.9 to −62.8), P < 0.001; −15.1 nM (−23.3 to −6.8), P < 0.001). The maximum absorbance by turbidimetry decreased significantly (P = 0.001) after supplementation. There was no change in clot lysis time, coagulation times or plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 and homocysteine levels.
Conclusions
In severe vitamin D deficiency, a high-dose cholecalciferol supplementation was associated with a reduction in thrombin generation and an average decreased number of fibrin protofibrils per fibers and fibrin fiber size measured by turbidimetry. This suggests that severe vitamin D deficiency may be associated with a potentially reversible prothrombotic profile.
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Department of Paediatric Endocrinology, Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, Central Manchester Foundation Hospitals NHS Trust, Manchester, UK
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Department of Paediatric Endocrinology, Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, Central Manchester Foundation Hospitals NHS Trust, Manchester, UK
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Background
Higher 25(OH)D3 levels are associated with lower HbA1c, but there are limited UK interventional trials assessing the effect of cholecalciferol on HbA1c.
Aims
(1) To assess the baseline 25(OH)D3 status in a Manchester cohort of children with type 1 diabetes (T1D). (2) To determine the effect of cholecalciferol administration on HbA1c.
Methods
Children with T1D attending routine clinic appointments over three months in late winter/early spring had blood samples taken with consent. Participants with a 25(OH)D3 level <50 nmol/L were treated with a one-off cholecalciferol dose of 100,000 (2–10 years) or 160,000 (>10 years) units. HbA1c levels before and after treatment were recorded.
Results
Vitamin D levels were obtained from 51 children. 35 were Caucasian, 11 South Asian and 5 from other ethnic groups. 42 were vitamin D deficient, but 2 were excluded from the analysis. All South Asian children were vitamin D deficient, with mean 25(OH)D3 of 28 nmol/L. In Caucasians, there was a negative relationship between baseline 25(OH)D3 level and HbA1c (r = −0.484, P < 0.01). In treated participants, there was no significant difference in mean HbA1c at 3 months (t = 1.010, P = 0.328) or at 1 year (t = −1.173, P = 0.248) before and after treatment. One-way ANCOVA, controlling for age, gender, ethnicity, BMI and diabetes duration showed no difference in Δ HbA1c level.
Conclusion
We report important findings at baseline, but in children treated with a stat dose of cholecalciferol, there was no effect on HbA1c. Further studies with larger sample sizes and using maintenance therapy are required.
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Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
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Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
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Context
Mild primary hyperparathyroidism has been associated with increased body fat mass and unfavorable cardiovascular risk factors.
Objective
To assess the effect of parathyroidectomy on fat mass, glucose and lipid metabolism.
Design, patients, interventions, main outcome measures
119 patients previously randomized to observation (OBS; n = 58) or parathyroidectomy (PTX; n = 61) within the Scandinavian Investigation of Primary Hyperparathyroidism (SIPH) trial, an open randomized multicenter study, were included. Main outcome measures for this study were the differences in fat mass, markers for lipid and glucose metabolism between OBS and PTX 5 years after randomization.
Results
In the OBS group, total cholesterol (Total-C) decreased from mean 5.9 (±1.1) to 5.6 (±1.0) mmol/L (P = 0.037) and LDL cholesterol (LDL-C) decreased from 3.7 (±1.0) to 3.3 (±0.9) mmol/L (P = 0.010). In the PTX group, the Total-C and LDL-C remained unchanged resulting in a significant between-group difference over time (P = 0.013 and P = 0.026, respectively). This difference was driven by patients who started with lipid-lowering medication during the study period (OBS: 5; PTX: 1). There was an increase in trunk fat mass in the OBS group, but no between-group differences over time. Mean 25(OH) vitamin D increased in the PTX group (P < 0.001), but did not change in the OBS group. No difference in parameters of glucose metabolism was detected.
Conclusion
In mild PHPT, the measured metabolic and cardiovascular risk factors were not modified by PTX. Observation seems safe and cardiovascular risk reduction should not be regarded as a separate indication for parathyroidectomy based on the results from this study.
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Vitamin D deficiency remains a major cause of rickets worldwide. Nutritional factors are the major cause and less commonly, inheritance causes. Recently, CYP2R1 has been reported as a major factor for 25-hydroxylation contributing to the inherited forms of vitamin D deficiency. We conducted a prospective cohort study at King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Centre, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to review cases with 25-hydroxylase deficiency and describe their clinical, biochemical, and molecular genetic features. We analyzed 27 patients from nine different families who presented with low 25-OH vitamin D and not responding to usual treatment. Genetic testing identified two mutations: c.367+1G>A (12/27 patients) and c.768dupT (15/27 patients), where 18 patients were homozygous for their identified mutation and 9 patients were heterozygous. Both groups had similar clinical manifestations ranging in severity, but none of the patients with the heterozygous mutation had hypocalcemic manifestations. Thirteen out of 18 homozygous patients and all the heterozygous patients responded to high doses of vitamin D treatment, but they regressed after decreasing the dose, requiring lifelong therapy. Five out of 18 homozygous patients required calcitriol to improve their biochemical data, whereas none of the heterozygous patients and patients who carried the c.367+1G>A mutation required calcitriol treatment. To date, this is the largest cohort series analyzing CYP2R1-related 25-hydroxylase deficiency worldwide, supporting its major role in 25-hydroxylation of vitamin D. It is suggested that a higher percentage of CYP2R1 mutations might be found in the Saudi population. We believe that our study will help in the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of similar cases in the future.
Centre de Référence des Maladies Rares du Calcium et du Phosphore Filière de Santé Maladies Rares OSCAR, Paris, France
Centre de Recherche des Cordeliers, INSERM, Sorbonne Université, Université de Paris, INSERM, UMRS1138, Paris, France
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Université Paris-Saclay, Inserm U1185, Physiologie et Physiopathologie Endocriniennes, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, Service d’Endocrinologie et Diabète de l’Enfant, Centre de Référence des Maladies Rares du Calcium et du Phosphore et Filière de Santé Maladies Rares OSCAR, Hôpital Bicêtre Paris Saclay, Le Kremlin-Bicêtre, France
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Centre de Référence des Maladies Rares du Calcium et du Phosphore Filière de Santé Maladies Rares OSCAR, Paris, France
Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, Institut Necker-Enfants Malades, INSERM U1151 – CNRS UMR 8253, Paris, France
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Association Francophone de Chirurgie Endocrinienne (AFCE), France
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Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, Hôpital Cochin, Biochimie et Génétique Moléculaires, Paris, France
INSERM, U1169, Université Paris Sud, Hôpital Bicêtre, Le Kremlin Bicêtre, France
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INSERM, U1418, CIC-EC, Hôpital Européen Georges Pompidou, Paris, France
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Centre de Référence des Maladies Rares du Calcium et du Phosphore Filière de Santé Maladies Rares OSCAR, Paris, France
Centre de Recherche des Cordeliers, INSERM, Sorbonne Université, Université de Paris, INSERM, UMRS1138, Paris, France
CNRS, ERL8228, Paris, France
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Context
Recent guidelines have provided recommendations for the care of patients with chronic hypoparathyroidism. Very little is known about actual physicians’ practices or their adherence to such guidelines.
Objective
To describe the physicians’ practice patterns and their compliance with international guidelines.
Design
The cohort studies included were Épi-Hypo (118 physicians and 107 patients, from September 2016 to December 2019) and ePatients (110 patients, November 2019).
Methods
Internet-based cohorts involving all settings at a nationwide level (France). Participants were (i) physicians treating patients with chronic hypoparathyroidism and patients with chronic hypoparathyroidism either participating in the (ii) Épi-Hypo study (Épi-Hypo 2019 patients), or (iii) Hypoparathyroidism France, the national representative association (ePatients).
Results
The physicians’ specialties were mainly endocrinology (61%), nephrology (28%), family medicine (2.5%), pediatrics (2.5%), rheumatology (2%), or miscellaneous (4%) and 45% were practicing in public universities. The median number of pharmaceutical drug classes prescribed was three per patient. The combination of active vitamin D and calcium salt was given to 59 and 58% of ePatients and Épi-Hypo 2019 patients, respectively. Eighty-five percent of ePatients and 87% of physicians reported monitoring plasma calcium concentrations at a steady state at least twice a year. In 32 and 26% of cases, respectively, ePatients and physicians reported being fully in accordance with international guidelines that recommend targeting symptoms, plasma calcium and phosphate values, and urine calcium excretion.
Conclusions
The care of patients with chronic hypoparathyroidism involves physicians with very different practices, so guidelines should include and target other specialists as well as endocrinologists. Full adherence to the guidelines is low in France.
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Department of Emergency Medicine, CHU Nantes, Nantes, France
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Objective
Severe hypocalcemia (Ca <1.9 mmol/L) is often considered an emergency because of a potential risk of cardiac arrest or seizures. However, there is little evidence to support this. The aim of our study was to assess whether severe hypocalcemia was associated with immediately life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias or neurological complications.
Methods
A retrospective observational study was carried out over a 2-year period in the Adult Emergency Department (ED) of Nantes University Hospital. All patients who had a protein-corrected calcium concentration measure were eligible for inclusion. Patients with multiple myeloma were excluded. The primary outcome was the number of life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias and/or neurological complications during the stay in the ED.
Results
A total of 41,823 patients had protein-corrected calcium (pcCa) concentrations measured, 155 had severe hypocalcemia, 22 were excluded because of myeloma leaving 133 for analysis. Median pcCa concentration was 1.73 mmol/L (1.57–1.84). Seventeen (12.8%) patients presented a life-threatening condition, 14 (10.5%) neurological and 3 (2.2%) cardiac during ED stay. However, these complications could be explained by the presence of underlying co-morbidities and or electrolyte disturbances other than hypocalcemia. Overall, 24 (18%) patients died in hospital. Vitamin D deficiency, chronic kidney disease and hypoparathyroidism were the most frequently found causes of hypocalcemia.
Conclusion
Thirteen percent of patients with severe hypocalcemia presented a life-threatening cardiac or neurological complication on the ED. However, a perfectly valid alternative cause could account for these complications. Further research is warranted to define the precise role of hypocalcemia.