142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition

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300852
Association of serum Vitamin D levels with respiratory and atopic diseases

142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition (November 15 - November 19, 2014): http://www.apha.org/events-and-meetings/annual
Monday, November 17, 2014 : 2:45 PM - 3:00 PM

Sreenivas P Veeranki, MBBS, DrPH, MPH , Department of Pediatrics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN
Shimin Zheng, PhD , Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, East Tennessee State University - College of Public Health, Johnson City, TN
Yan Cao, PhD , Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, East Tennessee State University - College of Public Health, Johnson City, TN
Arsham Alamian, PhD, MSc , Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, College of Public Health, East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, TN
Background: Vitamin D is known to be associated with inflammatory diseases, but its relationship with allergic diseases is unclear. The study objective is to determine the association of serum vitamin D levels and markers of wheeze, asthma and atopy.

Methods: Data (n = 9,463) on serum vitamin D levels and atopy were obtained from 2005-2006 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Serum vitamin D level was categorized into four groups: Normal (≥30ng/ml), Insufficient (21-29ng/ml), Deficient (11-20ng/ml) and Severely Deficient (≤10ng/ml). Atopy was defined as at least 1 positive allergen-specific IgE level measured for a panel of 5 common aeroallergens- cat, dog, house dust mite, cock roach and Alternaria species. Doctor-diagnosed asthma and wheeze in the previous 12 months were assessed by means of questionnaire. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were conducted to investigate the association of serum vitamin D with wheeze, asthma and atopy adjusting for age, sex, race, smoking, outdoor physical activity, body mass index and poverty income ratio.

Results: Overall, 15%, 14% and 28% of subjects had wheeze, asthma and atopy, respectively. Approximately 21% had normal serum vitamin D levels, while 35%, 28% and 5% had insufficient, deficient and severely deficient levels. Compared to subjects with normal vitamin D levels, those with insufficient, deficient and severely deficient levels had increased relative odds of wheeze and atopy with highest adjusted estimates in subjects with severe vitamin D deficiency (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 2.31, 95% Confidence Interval [CI] 1.73-3.10 for wheeze; OR 1.49, 95% CI 1.17-1.89 for atopy).  

Conclusion: Low serum vitamin D levels were found to be associated with wheeze and atopy. Findings contribute to ongoing efforts to understanding the role of vitamin D in atopic diseases.

Learning Areas:

Chronic disease management and prevention
Clinical medicine applied in public health
Epidemiology
Public health or related research

Learning Objectives:
Assess the prevalence of respiratory and atopy diseases outcomes. Evaluate the association of serum Vitamin D levels and wheezing, asthma and atopy. Compare the relationship of serum vitamin D levels and respiratory and atopy diseases in children with that of adults.

Keyword(s): Asthma, Chronic Disease Prevention

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have significant experience in respiratory and atopic diseases, and have conceptualized the study design, interpreted the results and drafted the abstract of the current study. In addition, I have good expertise in epidemiology and how epidemiological findings translate to policy, which will allow me to present the study details and findings at the conference.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.