Abstract 10716: Vitamin D Deficiency and Cardiovascular Disease Amongst Minority Ethnic Groups in the UK: A Cross Sectional Study

Abstract

Background Vitamin D deficiency is common amongst minority groups in Britain but its magnitude amongst South Asian and Black African-Caribbean groups is not well defined. The steroidal, endocrine nature of Vitamin D provides it with a putative link with cardiovascular disease, and we hypothesised that aberrant levels of this hormone would reflect a heightened risk of cardiovascular disease in these ethnic groups. Methods South Asian (n =1105, 57% male) and Black African-Caribbean (n =748, 51%male) subjects were recruited as part of a community heart failure study from 20 primary care practices, Birmingham, UK. Vitamin D_2/D₃ levels were measured to determine rates of total vitamin D status, which were age/sex adjusted. Results The majority of South Asians had severe vitamin D deficiency (42.2%, 95% CI: 39.2-45.1), which was more frequent than in Black African-Caribbean group (12.5%, 10.2-14.9) P< 0.001. Vitamin status in South Asian and Black African-Caribbean groups was unrelated to the presence of osteoporosis, and on multivariate analysis of South Asian vitamin D levels were independently associated with age (β = 0.18, P<0.001), haemoglobin (β = 0.12, P = 0.002), and negatively with alkaline phosphatase (a marker of bone mineralisation, β = - 0.11, P = 0.022). Amongst Black African-Caribbean subjects, vitamin D was independently associated with having ever smoked (β = -0.13, P = 0.006) and systolic blood pressure (β = 0.10, P = 0.038). Conclusions Vitamin D deficiency is a frequent biochemical observation amongst minority groups in Britain but the clinical significance is unclear, and ethnically specific. A proportionate susceptibility to bone disease is not apparent in either minority ethnic group.