Posted on November 21, 2013

Current Practice May Over-Diagnose Vitamin D Deficiency

Medical Xpress, November 20, 2013

The current “gold standard” test for measuring vitamin D status may not accurately diagnose vitamin D deficiency in black individuals. In an article in the Nov. 21 New England Journal of Medicine, a team of researchers report finding that genetic differences in a vitamin D carrier protein referred to as D-binding protein may explain the discrepancy between the prevalence of diagnosed vitamin D deficiency in black Americans–based on measuring the molecule 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD)–and a lack of the usual symptoms of vitamin deficiency.

The essential role of vitamin D in maintaining bone health is well recognized, but while measurement of 25OHD alone consistently classifies from 70 to 90 percent of black Americans as vitamin D deficient, the usual consequences of deficiency–such as low  and increased fracture risk–are actually less prevalent among black individuals. That inconsistency led the team led by Ravi Thadhani, MD, MPH, chief of the Division of Nephrology in the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Department of Medicine, to take a closer look at whether current methods accurately determine vitamin D deficiency.

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For the current study, researchers analyzed levels of 25OHD, levels and genetic variants of D-binding protein, and levels of calcium and parathyroid hormone–another marker of vitamin D deficiency–along with bone density readings in almost 1,200 white and around 900 black participants. The results indicated that black participants had significantly lower levels of both 25OHD and D-binding protein, compared with white participants and also showed that about 80 percent of the difference in D-binding protein levels could be explained by genetic variation. However, bone density and calcium levels were higher in black participants, and while their parathyroid hormone levels also were higher, the difference between black and white participants was slight.

“Black people are frequently treated for vitamin D deficiency, but we may not be measuring the right form of vitamin D to make that diagnosis,” says Thadhani, who is senior and co-corresponding author of the NEJM report. “While our finding that 80 percent of black participants in this study met criteria for vitamin D deficiency is consistent with previous studies, we were surprised to find no evidence of problems with bone health. Most vitamin D in the bloodstream is tightly bound to D-binding protein and is not active. When we determined the concentrations of circulating non-bound vitamin D, which would be available to cells, we found that levels of this form were equivalent between black and white participants, which suggested to us that these black individuals may not be truly deficient.”

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