Serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D and Osteoarthritis in Older People: The Progetto Veneto Anziani Study
Veronese Nicola Rejuvenation Research 2015 18 Issue 6: December 18,
Recent work has shown that low 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) levels are associated with the presence of osteoarthritis (OA), but these studies focused on radiographical changes of OA, investigated only one joint, and did not consider the association with OA-related pain. In this study, we aimed to examine the relationship between 25OHD levels and any presence of OA and pain in a cohort of older people. This study was part of the Progetto Veneto Anziani (Pro.V.A), a population-based cohort study in older people.
In this cross-sectional work, we considered 2756 subjects (1102 males and 1654 females) with a mean age of 74.2 ± 7.1 years. On logistic regression analysis, taking those in the highest 25OHD quartile for reference, those in the lowest quartile had significantly higher odds of OA involving the hands (odds ratio [OR] = 1.26, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.15–1.38 in the sample as whole; 1.36, 95% CI 1.15–1.60 in men and 1.22, 95% CI 1.09–1.37 in women), and pain (OR = 1.18, 95% CI 1.06–1.32 in the sample as whole; 1.52, 95% CI 1.21–1.90 in men and 1.15, 95% CI 1.03–1.29 in women). Similar results were found for the hip. For the knee, low 25OHD levels were associated with the presence of OA in the sample as a whole, and in women, and with the presence of pain in the sample as a whole.
In conclusion, low 25OHD levels are associated with the presence of OA and with OA-related pain, particularly when the hand and hip are involved.
