Vitamin D Deficiency May Indicate CVD in Obese Children

Vitamin D deficiency was associated with early markers of cardiovascular disease in obese children, according to the results of a study presented this week at ENDO 2017, the annual scientific meeting of the Endocrine Society, in Orlando.

"Pediatric obesity affects 17% of infants, children, and adolescents ages 2 to 19 in the United States, and obesity is a risk factor for vitamin D deficiency. These findings suggest that vitamin D deficiency may have negative effects on specific lipid markers with an increase in cardiovascular risk among children and adolescents," said lead author

Marisa Censani, MD, a pediatric endocrinologist and director of the Pediatric Obesity Program in the Division of Pediatric Endocrinology at New York Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medicine in New York, N.Y., and her colleagues reviewed the medical records, including vitamin D levels, of children and adolescents between 6 and 17 years of age who were evaluated at the pediatric endocrinology outpatient clinics at Weill Cornell Medicine over a 2-year period.

Overall, 178 of 332 patients met criteria for overweight and obesity: Body Mass Index (BMI) above the 85th percentile; and 60 patients with BMI above the 85th percentile had fasting lipid test results available.

Total cholesterol, triglycerides, HDL, low-density lipoprotein (LDL), and non-HDL cholesterol were collected; and total cholesterol/HDL and triglyceride/HDL ratios were calculated. Vitamin D deficiency was considered to be 25 hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) below 20 ng/ml.

Vitamin D deficiency was found to be significantly associated with an increase in atherogenic lipids and markers of early cardiovascular disease. Total cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL, non-HDL cholesterol, as well as total cholesterol/HDL and triglyceride/HDL ratios, were all higher in vitamin D-deficient patients compared to patients without vitamin D deficiency.

"This research is newsworthy because this is one of the first studies to assess the relationship of vitamin D deficiency to both lipoprotein ratios and non-high density lipoprotein (non-HDL) cholesterol, specific lipid markers impacting cardiovascular risk during childhood, in children and adolescents with obesity/overweight," Censani said in a press release about the results. "These results support screening children and adolescents with overweight and obesity for vitamin D deficiency and the potential benefits of improving vitamin D status to reduce cardiometabolic risk."

Reference

Censani M, Schumaker T, Hammad HT, Christos PJ. Vitamin D status is associated with early markers of cardiovascular disease in children and adolescents with overweight and obesity. Presented at: ENDO 2017: the 99th Annual Meeting & Expo. April 1-4, 2017; Orlando, Florida.