Vitamin D not tied to subclinical atherosclerosis in T1DM

(HealthDay)—For individuals with type 1 diabetes, low concentrations of vitamin D metabolites are not associated with an increased risk of subclinical atherosclerosis, according to a study published online March 25 in Diabetes Care.

Michael C. Sachs, Ph.D., from the University of Washington in Seattle, and colleagues examined the association between the levels of circulating vitamin D metabolites (25-hydroxyvitamin D, 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D, and 24,25-dihydroxyvitamin D) and subclinical atherosclerosis (coronary artery calcium and common and internal carotid intima-media thickness) in 1,193 patients with type 1 diabetes.

After a median of ten years, the researchers found that lower concentrations of vitamin D metabolites were associated with a lower prevalence and severity of coronary artery calcium. For example, the odds ratio was 0.80 for each 25 nmol/L decrease in 25-hydroxyvitamin D in a fully adjusted model. There was no association between vitamin D metabolite concentrations and common or internal carotid intima-media thickness.

"We did not find evidence linking impaired vitamin D metabolism with increased subclinical atherosclerosis in type 1 diabetes," Sachs and colleagues conclude.

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