WASHINGTON, DC -- December 10, 2008 -- Vitamin D deficiency, which is traditionally associated with bone and muscle weakness, may also increase the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), according to a review article published in the December 9 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
The authors issue practical recommendations to screen for and treat low vitamin D levels, especially in patients with risk factors for heart disease or diabetes.
"Vitamin D deficiency is an unrecognised, emerging cardiovascular risk factor, which should be screened for and treated," said James H. O'Keefe, MD, Preventive Cardiology at the Mid America Heart Institute, Kansas City, Missouri. "Vitamin D is easy to assess, and supplementation is simple, safe, and inexpensive."
Recent data from the Framingham Heart Study suggest patients with vitamin D levels below 15 ng/mL were twice as likely to experience a heart attack, stroke, or other CV event within the next 5 years compared with those with higher levels. This risk remained even when researchers adjusted for traditional CV risk factors.
"Restoring vitamin D levels to normal is important in maintaining good musculoskeletal health, and it may also improve heart health and prognosis," said Dr. O'Keefe. "We need large randomised controlled trials to determine whether or not vitamin D supplementation can actually reduce future heart disease and deaths."
In the absence of clinical guidelines, the authors outline specific recommendations for restoring and maintaining optimal vitamin D levels in CV patients. These patients should initially be treated with 50,000 IU of vitamin D2 or D3 once weekly for 8 to 12 weeks. Maintenance therapy should be continued using one of the following strategies:
· 50,000 IU vitamin D2 or D3 every 2 weeks
· 1,000 to 2,000 IU vitamin D3 daily
· Sunlight exposure for 10 minutes for white patients (longer for people with increased skin pigmentation) between the hours of 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM
SOURCE: American College of Cardiology
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