Preterm Infant Vitamin D Level Affects Calcium and Bone Health

Vitamin D levels in preterm infants significantly affect bone mineral content (BMC) and density and are negatively correlated with parathyroid hormone (PTH) levels, according to a study published in the Journal of Perinatology.

Sarah N. Taylor, MD, of the Department of Pediatrics at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, and associates conducted a single-center, prospective, observational analysis to investigate the association between 25-hydroxyvitamin D status and calcium concentration and bone health in preterm infants.

The researchers measured 89 very low birthweight infants for 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels, calcium markers, and bone health from birth to term age and compared these results with PTH concentrations and bone mineralization via statistical modeling.

The investigators reported a positive correlation between 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels and femur BMC and density until plateauing at thresholds of 48 ng/mL and 46 ng/mL, respectively. In addition, PTH levels were negatively correlated with 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels until plateauing at 42 ng/mL.

“Preterm infant vitamin D status was significantly associated with PTH status and femur mineralization with suggestion that achieving a specific 25-hydroxyvitamin concentration is associated with optimal calcium homeostasis and femur bone mineralization,” the authors reported.

Reference

Taylor SN, Wahlquist A, Wagner CL, Ramakrishnan V, Ebeling M, Hollis BW. Functional indicators of vitamin D adequacy for very low birth weight infants. [Published online May 9, 2018]. J Perinatology. doi: 10.1038/s41372-018-0098-7

This article originally appeared on Clinical Advisor