Association between vitamin D status and serum parathyroid hormone concentration and calcaneal stiffness in Japanese adolescents: sex differences in susceptibility to vitamin D deficiency

Abstract

There is currently insufficient information on serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) and parathyroid hormone (PTH) concentrations, and bone mineral status in healthy adolescents to allow reference values to be set. This study aimed to provide comparable data on vitamin D status in Japanese adolescents and to assess sex differences in susceptibility to vitamin D insufficiency. Serum 25OHD and PTH concentrations were measured in 1,380 healthy adolescents (aged 12-18 years). Subjects completed a questionnaire on exercise history, diet, and lifestyle factors. Calcaneal stiffness was evaluated by quantitative ultrasound. Serum 25OHD concentrations in boys and girls were 60.8 ± 18.3 and 52.8 ± 17.0 nmol/L, respectively. Approximately 30 % of boys and 47 % of girls had suboptimal 25OHD concentrations (<50 nmol/L). Serum PTH concentration was negatively correlated with serum 25OHD concentration in boys, but negatively correlated with calcium intake rather than serum 25OHD in girls. In contrast, the increment in calcaneal stiffness as a result of elevation of serum 25OHD was higher in girls than in boys. As vitamin D deficiency is common in Japanese adolescents, it was estimated that intakes of ≥12 and ≥14 μg/day vitamin D would be required to reach 25OHD concentrations of 50 nmol/L in boys and girls, respectively. Moreover, the results of the present study indicate that vitamin D deficiency has a greater association with calcaneal stiffness in girls than in boys.

Vitamin D Status and Its Association with Parathyroid Hormone Concentration in Brazilians

“…Similar results were observed in healthy individuals in Australia and Riga, and a value of 38 ng/mL was suggested as sufficient to avoid an increase in PTH [ 20 , 30 ]. Other studies reinforce the negative correlation between vitamin D and PTH [ 31 – 33 ].…”

Assessment criteria for vitamin D deficiency/insufficiency in Japan &mdash; proposal by an expert panel supported by Research Program of Intractable Diseases, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Japan, The Japanese Society for Bone and Mineral Research and The Japan Endocrine Society [Opinion]

“…At least another Japanese study reported positive correlation between BMD and serum 25(OH)D level [14]. A recent study of 1,380 Japanese male and female teenagers between 12 and 18 years old reported positive correlations between serum 25(OH)D and calcaneal stiffness, which was significantly lower in those with serum 25(OH)D less than 20 ng/mL [19].…”

Eldecalcitol increases bone mass in patients with Turner syndrome who have insufficient bone mass acquisition after estrogen replacement therapy

“…In this study, the values in TS patients were even lower than in prior studies. The 25(OH)D values in Japanese population overall (approximately 16.7-18.1 ng/mL [17,18], and 18.7-21.2 ng/mL [19,20] in youths), are reportedly lower than those generally reported overseas. The fact that most of the patients in this study were Vitamin D deficient is considered a characteristic of TS as well as a racial/ethnic effect in the Japanese population.…”