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Hypovitaminosis D in Adults with Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Potential Role of Ethnicity

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Abstract

Background

Although vitamin D deficiency occurs in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), it is currently unclear to what extent ethnicity affects vitamin D levels. Our aim was therefore to determine the ethnic variation in serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D status and its association with disease severity in adults with IBD.

Methods

We conducted a prospective cohort study in ambulatory care IBD patients. Clinical disease severity was assessed through validated questionnaires. Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels were used for vitamin D status. C-reactive protein (CRP), ferritin and hemoglobin (Hgb) levels were correlated with serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels.

Results

Sixty ulcerative colitis (UC) and forty Crohn’s disease (CD) patients were enrolled comprising 65 % Caucasians and 29 % South Asians. However, South Asians had consistently lower average serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels (All 44.8 ± 18.1 nmol/L, UC 48.2 ± 18.3 nmol/L, CD 24.3 ± 13.3 nmol/L). Hypovitaminosis D was found in 39 % of All, 36.7 % of UC and 42.5 % of CD patients. A significantly higher proportion of South Asians were vitamin D deficient when compared to Caucasians in All and CD groups (58.6 % vs. 30.8 %, p = 0.01 and 85.7 % vs. 32.3 %, p < 0.01, respectively).

Conclusions

A significantly higher percentage of South Asians had hypovitaminosis D when compared to Caucasians. Disease severity trended towards an inverse relationship with vitamin D status in all South Asian and Caucasian CD patients, although most patients in this study had only mild to moderate disease. We suggest that vitamin D supplementation should be considered in all adult IBD patients.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Dr. Yoshida, Dr. Gray, and Dr. Byrne for their support and assistance in patient recruitment. We are grateful for Ms. Lisa Kuramoto’s guidance on statistical analysis. We appreciate the help from staff at the Division of Gastroenterology at Vancouver General Hospital.

Conflict of interest

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Medicine, Gordon and Leslie Diamond Health Care Centre, University of British Columbia, 5th Floor, 2775 Laurel St, Vancouver, BC, V5Z 1M9, Canada

    Yi-Tzu Nancy Fu, Nazira Chatur, Cindy Cheong-Lee & Baljinder Salh

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  1. Yi-Tzu Nancy Fu
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  2. Nazira Chatur
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  3. Cindy Cheong-Lee
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  4. Baljinder Salh
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Correspondence to Baljinder Salh.

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Fu, YT.N., Chatur, N., Cheong-Lee, C. et al. Hypovitaminosis D in Adults with Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Potential Role of Ethnicity. Dig Dis Sci 57, 2144–2148 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10620-012-2130-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10620-012-2130-7

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