Author Interviews, Heart Disease, JCEM, Pediatrics, Vitamin D / 12.02.2015

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Markus Juonala, MD, PhD University of Turku Finland Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Earlier studies suggest that low vitamin D levels may be associated with cardiovascular disease. We wanted to study whether low childhood vitamin levels predict carotid intima-media thickness, a marker of early atherosclerosis, in adulthood. We observed that those children with vitamin D in lowest quartile had increased risk for high carotid intima-media thickness.
Author Interviews, BMJ, Genetic Research, Vitamin D / 19.11.2014

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Børge G Nordestgaard, MD, DMSc Professor, University of Copenhagen Chief Physician, Herlev Hospital, Copenhagen University Hospital Dept. Clinical Biochemistry Herlev Ringvej Herlev, Denmark Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Prof. Nordestgaard: Many people take vitamin D supplements with the hope of reducing morbidity and mortality. However, it is unclear whether low vitamin D per se is a direct cause of increased mortality or whether it is simply a marker of poor lifestyle in general and/or underlying hidden disease. Our study involved 95,766 white participants of Danish descent from three cohorts in Copenhagen, who had genetic variants known to affect vitamin D levels. We found that genetically low vitamin D levels were associated with increased all-cause mortality, cancer mortality, and other mortality, but not with cardiovascular mortality. This is important as such genetics studies cannot be explained by poor lifestyle or hidden disease, as neither can change your genes.
Endocrinology, Kidney Disease, Vitamin D / 19.11.2014

Stuart M. Sprague, DO, FACP, FASN, FNKF Chairperson, Division of Nephrology and Hypertension NorthShore University HealthSystem Evanston, Illinois 60201MedicalResearch.com Interview with:with Stuart M. Sprague, DO, FACP, FASN, FNKF Chairperson, Division of Nephrology and Hypertension NorthShore University HealthSystem Evanston, Illinois 60201 Medical Research: Congratulations, Dr. Sprague, on your presentation of another successful phase 3 clinical trial program at the recently concluded Annual Meeting of the American Society of Nephrology. Your presentation unveiled a new vitamin D repletion therapy that effectively controls secondary hyperparathyroidism in chronic kidney disease. Can you give us a little background for the presented studies? Dr. Sprague: Thanks! Vitamin D insufficiency is a big problem in chronic kidney decease (or CKD): it afflicts more than 20 million adults in the United States who have stages 1 through 4 CKD. Its prevalence increases with CKD severity and it drives secondary hyperparathyroidism. The studies which I presented evaluated a novel therapy to treat secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT) arising from vitamin D insufficiency in patients diagnosed with stage 3 or 4 CKD. This new therapy is a modified-release formulation of calcifediol. Medical Research: Can you tell us more about vitamin D insufficiency? Dr. Sprague: Vitamin D insufficiency is a condition in which the body has low vitamin D stores. It is characterized by inadequate blood levels of the vitamin D, known as 25-hydroxyvitamin D. An estimated 70-90% of CKD patients have vitamin D insufficiency, which can lead to SHPT and resultant debilitating bone diseases. Vitamin D insufficiency has also been associated with increased mortality in CKD.
Author Interviews, CMAJ, Pediatrics, Vitamin D / 22.10.2014

Jonathon Maguire MD MSc FRCPC Pediatrician and Scientist Department of Pediatrics Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute St. Michael’s Hospital University of TorontoMedicalResearch.com: Interview with: Jonathon Maguire MD MSc FRCPC Pediatrician and Scientist  Department of Pediatrics Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute St. Michael’s Hospital University of Toronto   Medical Research: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Maguire: One of the main health benefits of cow’s milk is vitamin D.  We were interested to know if non-cow’s milk supports children’s vitamin D blood levels as well as cow’s milk.
Author Interviews, JAMA, Vitamin D / 01.10.2014

Karin Amrein, MD, MSc Assistant Professor Department of Internal Medicine Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism Medical University of Graz 8036 Graz, AustriaMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Karin Amrein, MD, MSc Assistant Professor Department of Internal Medicine Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism Medical University of Graz 8036 Graz, Austria Medical Research: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Amrein: This is the first large clinical trial on vitamin D in critical care. In a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial, a population of mixed adult ICU patients with vitamin D deficiency (defined as 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] level ≤ 20ng/ml) was assigned to receive either vitamin D3 or placebo. We used a high loading dose of vitamin D3 followed by monthly maintenance doses of 90,000 IU for a total of 5 months. Because of a substantially increased risk for skeletal complications below 12ng/ml of 25-hydroxyvitamin D, we used this threshold for a predefined subgroup analysis. Overall, high-dose vitamin D3 compared with placebo did not reduce hospital length of stay (primary endpoint), intensive care unit (ICU) length of stay, hospital mortality, or 6 month-mortality
Author Interviews, General Medicine, Heart Disease, JACC, Vitamin D / 25.08.2014

MedicalResearch.com Interview with Esther Ooi & Børge G Nordestgaard, MD, DMSc Professor, University of Copenhagen Chief Physician, Herlev Hospital, Copenhagen University Hospital Dept. Clinical Biochemistry Herlev Ringvej 75, DK-2730 Herlev, Denmark Medical Research: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: Our findings suggest that low 25(OH)D levels observationally is simply a marker for elevated atherogenic lipoproteins, and thus question a role for vitamin D supplementation in the prevention of cardiovascular disease.
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Vitamin D / 08.06.2014

Adetunji Toriola, MD, PhD, MPH Assistant Professor Division of Public Health Sciences Department of Surgery Washington University School of Medicine Siteman Cancer Center St. Louis, MO MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Adetunji Toriola, MD, PhD, MPH Assistant Professor Division of Public Health Sciences Department of Surgery Washington University School of Medicine Siteman Cancer Center St. Louis, MO MedicalResearch: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Toriola: Very little is known about the impact of vitamin D in prognosis among cancer patients. This knowledge is of importance because of the increasing number of people living cancer and the high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among cancer patients. We conducted a systematic review of studies published to date on the association of circulating vitamin D (25-OHD) levels with prognosis among cancer patients. This review suggests that higher circulating vitamin D levels may improve overall survival among breast and colorectal cancer patients but there is paucity of information on the role of circulating vitamin D levels in prognosis among patients with other cancer types.
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, JCEM, Vitamin D / 01.05.2014

Hui Wang, M.D., Ph.D., Professor Principal Investigator Director, Food Safety Research Center Institute for Nutritional Sciences, SIBS, CASMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Hui Wang, M.D., Ph.D., Professor Principal Investigator Director, Food Safety Research Center Institute for Nutritional Sciences, SIBS, CAS MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study?
 Dr. Wang: 
This meta-analysis has systematically reviewed 25 relevant studies composed of 17,332 cancer cases to give a comprehensive perspective on the relationship between vitamin D and cancer patient outcomes. Our result demonstrated that vitamin D levels are linked to better outcomes in several types of cancer patients. The strongest link was found in breast cancer, lymphoma and colorectal cancer. There was less evidence of a connection in people with lung cancer, gastric cancer, prostate cancer, leukemia, melanoma or Merkel cell carcinoma, but the available data were positive. We also found that a 10 nmol/L increase in vitamin D levels was tied to a 4 percent increase in survival among people with cancer.
Heart Disease, Vitamin D / 01.05.2014

Joshua Lewis, Ph.D Raine Foundation / Alan Robson Fellow Bone and Vascular Research Group School of Medicine and Pharmacology University of Western Australia Department of Endocrinology and Diabetes Sir Charles Gairdner HospitalMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Joshua Lewis, Ph.D Raine Foundation / Alan Robson Fellow Bone and Vascular Research Group School of Medicine and Pharmacology University of Western Australia Department of Endocrinology and Diabetes Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Lewis: We tested the hypothesis raised by others that calcium supplementation with or without vitamin D increases coronary heart disease and mortality risk in elderly women. To do this we undertook a meta-analysis of published and unpublished data from patient level and cluster randomized controlled trials of calcium supplements with or without vitamin D in elderly women. Importantly all events included in this large meta-analysis were verified by clinical review, hospital record or death certificate. We did not observe any significant increase in all-cause mortality or coronary heart disease events that included myocardial infarction, angina pectoris and acute coronary syndromes and chronic coronary heart disease.
Author Interviews, Frailty, Lancet, Vitamin D / 23.04.2014

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr Mark Bolland, PhD Bone and Joint Research Group, Department of Medicine University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Prof. Bolland: In a meta-analysis of 20 randomized clinical trials, there was no effect of vitamin D with or without calcium on falls.  In a trial sequential analysis of these trials, the effect estimate for vitamin D with or without calcium on falls lay within the futility boundary, providing reliable evidence that vitamin D supplementation does not alter the relative risk of falls by ≥15% and suggesting that future trials that are similar in design to current trials are unlikely to change that conclusion.
Allergies, Author Interviews, Vitamin D / 03.03.2014

Dr. Jill A Poole MD Pulmonary, Critical Care, Sleep, and Allergy Division, Department of Medicine College of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center The Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NebraskaMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Jill A Poole MD Pulmonary, Critical Care, Sleep, and Allergy Division, Department of Medicine College of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center The Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Poole:  Our study found that adding vitamin D 4000 IU daily to a cocktail of anti-allergy medications resulted in a further 40% reduction in hive symptom scores at 3 months.  There was no further reduction in hive symptoms when 600 IU of vitamin D was added to the anti-allergy medications.  The anti-allergy regimen utilized was triple drug therapy with cetirizine (twice daily), ranitidine (twice daily), and montelukast (once daily).  No adverse reactions occurred.
Author Interviews, JAMA, Surgical Research, Vitamin D / 19.02.2014

Sadeq A. Quraishi, MD, MHA Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School Boston, MassachusettsMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Sadeq A. Quraishi, MD, MHA Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School Boston, Massachusetts MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Quraishi: Our retrospective study suggests that there is an association between pre-operative 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] levels and the risk of hospital-acquired infections after gastric bypass surgery. In particular, patients with 25(OH)D levels <30 ng/ml before surgery were almost 4 times more likely to develop a surgical site infection within 30 days of surgery than patients with pre-operative 25(OH)D levels at 30 ng/ml or higher.
Author Interviews, Heart Disease, Vitamin D / 14.02.2014

Eirik Magnus Meek Degerud Department of Clincal Medicine University of BergenMedicalResearch.com Interview with:  Eirik Magnus Meek Degerud Department of Clincal Medicine University of Bergen MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: That among patients with established coronary artery disease there was no observable relationship between the amount of vitamin D circulating in their blood and the extent of disease progression during the following year.
Author Interviews, Vitamin D / 24.01.2014

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Professor Mark Bolland Senior Research Fellow in the Department of Medicine University of Auckland, New Zealand MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Prof. Bolland: We pooled data from randomised controlled trials of vitamin D supplements in traditional meta-analyses and trial sequential analyses to assess the effect on important health outcomes. We found that vitamin D supplements (with or without calcium) had no effect on myocardial infarction, stroke, total cancer, or total fracture, and further similar trials are unlikely to alter these conclusions. For hip fracture, the results were more complicated. There was uncertainty as to whether vitamin D by itself increased the risk of hip fracture or had no effect, whereas the combination of vitamin D with calcium had no effect on hip fracture in people living in the community, but reduced hip fracture risk in two trials of elderly women living in residential care.
Author Interviews, Johns Hopkins, Pediatrics, Vitamin D / 24.10.2013

Meredith Atkinson, MD, MHS Assistant Professor of Pediatrics Division of Pediatric Nephrology Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Baltimore, MD 21287 MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Meredith Atkinson, MD, MHS Assistant Professor of Pediatrics Division of Pediatric Nephrology Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Baltimore, MD 21287   MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Atkinson: First, among a healthy cross-section of U.S. children, vitamin D deficiency defined as levels below 30 ng/mL (the currently accepted threshold for adequate vs. inadequate vitamin D) were associated with nearly twice the risk for anemia compared to those with sufficient vitamin D levels.  Secondly, when we looked specifically at Caucasian and African-American children, we found that children with the lowest vitamin D levels were at increased risk for anemia in both groups, but that the specific vitamin D level below which the anemia risk started to increase was much lower in the African-American children (12 ng/mL) than in the Caucasian children (20 mg/mL).
Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Hearing Loss, Medical Research Centers, Vitamin D, Weight Research / 22.10.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Sharon Curhan, MD, ScM Channing Division of Network Medicine Brigham and Women's Hospital Harvard Medical School Boston, MA 02115 MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Curhan: The main findings of our study are that higher body mass index and larger waist circumference are associated with an increased risk of acquired hearing loss, and higher level of physical activity is associated with a decreased risk of acquired hearing loss in women. Specifically, after adjusting for potential confounders, compared with women with BMI <25 kg/m2, the relative risk for hearing loss was 25% higher for women with BMI >40. Compared with women with waist circumference <71 cm, the relative risk for hearing loss was 27% higher for women with waist circumference >88 cm. Higher physical activity was inversely related to risk; compared with women in the lowest quintile of physical activity, women in the highest quintile of physical activity had a 17% lower risk of hearing loss. Walking, the most common form of physical activity among these women, was associated with a lower risk; women who walked 2 hours per week or more had a 15% lower risk of hearing loss than women who walked less than one hour per week. These findings provide evidence that maintaining healthy weight and staying physically active, potentially modifiable lifestyle factors, may help reduce the risk of hearing loss.
Author Interviews, Blood Pressure - Hypertension, JAMA, Vitamin D / 14.08.2013

Miles D. Witham, PhD Aging and Health, University of Dundee, Dundee, United KingdomMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Miles D. Witham, PhD Aging and Health, University of Dundee, Dundee, United Kingdom MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: We gave high dose vitamin D3 (100,000 units) or placebo every 3 months to people aged 70 or over, who all had isolated systolic hypertension (ISH). The main focus of the trial was to test whether vitamin D supplementation could reduce blood pressure in this group of patients – this pattern of blood pressure, whether the systolic (top number) is high, and the diastolic (bottom number) is normal, is very common in older people. Previous studies have suggested a link between low vitamin D levels and higher blood pressure, but no trial has yet tested this idea in older patients with ISH. Despite the treatment causing a significant increase in circulating vitamin D levels, we saw no significant reduction in blood pressure with vitamin D supplementation, despite the trial running for a year. We tested whether certain groups might still benefit – e.g. those with very high blood pressure or very low vitamin D levels, but even these groups did not show a reduction in blood pressure. We also tested whether vitamin D supplementation reduced the health and stiffness of arteries – both important predictors of future heart attack or stroke. Unfortunately, vitamin D did not affect these measures either, and didn’t reduce cholesterol or glucose levels. On the more positive side, vitamin D supplements did appear safe, and the number of falls in the vitamin D group was slightly lower than in those people who received placebo. This is reassuring, as an earlier study (Sanders et al) had suggested that very high doses of vitamin D might make falls more likely, in contrast to previous low dose studies that show a protective effect of vitamin D against falls.
Author Interviews, Race/Ethnic Diversity, Vitamin D / 06.08.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Christopher J Gallagher MD Bone Metabolism Unit, Creighton University Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Gallagher: Vitamin D 400 IU daily will meet the RDA ( Recommended Dietary Allowance for 97.5% of population) for young white women age 25-45 years. Black women may need more- 800-1600 IU, however,the number of black women in study was small and this dose needs confirmation. This data is based on exceeding a serum 25 hydroxyvitamin D level of 20ng/ml ( 50nmol/l)
Author Interviews, McGill, Nutrition, Probiotics, Vitamin D / 20.06.2013

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Mitchell Jones, MD, PhD Faculty of Medicine at McGill University in MontrealDr. Mitchell Jones, MD, PhD Faculty of Medicine at McGill University in Montreal MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Jones: We had previously reported on the cholesterol lowering efficacy of bile salt hydrolase active L. reuteri NCIMB 30242 due to reduced intestinal sterol absorption. However, the effects of bile salt hydrolase active L. reuteri NCIMB 30242 on fat soluble vitamins was previously unknown and was the focus of the study.