Vitamin D deficiency in dialysis patients and its effect on various disease markers

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Epidemiologic data has linked vitamin D deficiency with a variety of negative health outcomes. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of 25-hydroxy-vitamin D defi ciency in our outpatient dialysis patients and to assess the association between vitamin D level and various markers of disease. METHODS: We performed a cross-sectional study evaluating 25-hydroxy-vitamin D levels in 327 chronic dialysis patients. Associations between vitamin D level and various disease markers were measured using Pearson correlation, Spearman correlation, and Kendall's Tau. RESULTS: Mean 25-hydroxy-vitamin D level was 19.7 ± 12.7 ng/mL. Vitamin D deficiency, defi ned as 25-hydroxy-vitamin D <30 ng/mL, was present in 85% of individuals (277/327). Using a Spearman correlation, there was a statistically signifi cant negative association between vitamin D level and triglycerides and transferrin saturation while a positive association existed with albumin. No other significant correlations were noted. CONCLUSIONS: Although vitamin D deficiency was highly prevalent in our dialysis patients, we were unable to demonstrate a correlation between a 25-hydroxy-vitamin D level and the majority of disease markers evaluated in this study. Further research is necessary to fully elucidate the consequence of vitamin D deficiency in patients with end-stage renal disease.