Abstract

Previous research studies had suggested that low serum calcidiol could lead to the onset of chronic inflammatory conditions (CIC). This study used the dataset of National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2005-2006 to investigate whether serum calcidiol can predict CIC. The linear correlation between serum calcidiol and body mass index (BMI) was explored for therapeutic purposes. A point prevalence of serum calcidiol deficiency was 84.0% in each CIC group. People of African origin were eleven times more likely to suffer from vitamin-D deficiency (crude ORc=10.57[7.98-13.99]). Linear regression elicited strong negative correlation between calcidiol and C-reactive protein (CRP) after adjustment (R2=0.33; r=-0.57; p<0.001). Logistic regression showed non-significant association between calcidiol and CIC after adjustment ORa=1.16[0.93-1.44], 1.03[0.81-1.31] and 0.76[0.55-1.05] for asthma, arthritis and malignancy, respectively. Linear regression study showed a strong linear negative correlation between calcidiol and (BMI) after adjustment R2=0.27; r=-0.52; p<0.001. Although serum calcidiol is not an ideal predictor of CIC; however, we cannot completely rule out an association due to the complexity related to the presence of confounding, intermediate, and regulatory factors. Additional findings may suggest the potential for tailoring vitamin-D supplementation to individual’s weight.

Key words: Calcidiol, NHANES 2005-2006, chronic inflammatory conditions, C-reactive protein, body max index.