Vitamin D Deficiency
International Journal of Cell & Molecular Biology (IJCMB) Accepted on 15 November, 2010, Vol. 1 (3), pp 254-257, 1st December, 2010 Available online at http://www. ijcmb. yolasite. com/archive. php Research article VITAMIN D DEFICIENCY IN THE WELL FED CLASS OF PAKISTAN: THE POSSIBLE CAUSES AND TRENDS Yusra H. Siddiqui *, Rashid Minhas, Adnan Yaqoob, Samina Shakeel Department of Biochemistry, Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan This population-based survey was conducted to determine frequency of vitamin D deficiency in the twin cities of Pakistan. 000 patients were evaluated for tests of circulating 25-hydroxy-vitamin D (25-OHD) levels using electrochemiluminescence method. Median 25-OHD was 14. 73 ng/ml, 14. 12 ng/ml in females and 16. 51 ng/ml in males. Their mean age was 45. 02 years. 73 % had vitamin D deficiency (males 20. 7% ; females 79. 2% ), 16 % had insufficiency (males 25. 7%; f emales 72. 9%) and only 11 % were vitamin D sufficient (males 29. 1%; f emales 70%). T-test and C hi-square t est w ere d one an d a marked p attern observed i n m ales was t hat af ter 50 t hey t end to be l ess vi tamin D d eficient.
These dat a conclude that vitamin D d eficiency is ex tensive in t he t win c ities of P akistan an d s uggest that routine monitoring of vitamin D levels may be of benefit. Key words: Vitamin D; Blood levels; Rickets; Osteomalacia; Bone problems Introduction Several important developments ha ve regenerated interest in vitamin D. Serum 25-hydroxy-vitamin D (25OHD) is widely r ecognized as t he best m easure of vitamin D status a nd its r ole in the maintenance of t he immune, reproductive, muscular, s keletal a nd integumentary sy stem i s be ing extensively acknowledged (Whiting and Calvo, 2005).
Vitamin D de ficiency appeared dur ing t he i ndustrial revolution and at the beginning of the twentieth century an out break of the vitamin D deficiency disease r ickets occurred among urbanised young children on bot h sides of the Atlantic Ocean (Shrapnel and Truswell, 2006). Numerous studies ha ve identified a hi gh prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency i n people living in N orth A merica a nd E urope. Reports of ext ensive vitamin D de ficiency ar e al so well doc umented in literature in nursing home patients and ambulatory ones (Mosekilde, 2005; Zuberi et al. 2008). It has been well established that vitamin D is essential to bone health, severe deficiencies l eads to osteomalacia and rickets, mild to moderate de ficiencies can result i n osteoporosis and increased fracture r isk (Pfeifer et al . , 2002). But, in this country where numerous other major problems e xist, little a ttention is given towards deficiency of such a m ajor v itamin and it i s g enerally assumed t hat t he e conomically f it i ndividuals do not suffer from this deficiency.
The present study w as carried out t o de termine t he frequency of v itamin D deficiency in the t wo m ajor cities of Pakistan, Islamabad and Rawalpindi. These two cities are well developed in all r espects, with modern infrastructure facilities and a hi gh standard of l iving. Residents here have a healthy life style. Materials and Methods Setting The second author col lected all t he da ta f rom pa tients enrolled at Excel L abs P vt. L td. , Islamabad, Pakistan, between November 2008 to March 2010, a time span of 17 months. 254 *Corresponding author Email: y. siddiqui@bristol. ac. uk, Tel Number: 0044-750-1666996
