(17-10-13) Meta-analysis associates active vitamin D therapy with lower risk of mortality among kidney disease patients

Meta-analysis associates active vitamin D therapy with lower risk of mortality among kidney disease patients over up to eleven years of follow-up

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Tuesday, October 8, 2013. On September 25, 2013 the journal BMC Nephrology
published the results of a meta-analysis of chronic kidney disease patients
which found an association between supplementation with active forms of
vitamin D and a lower risk of dying over follow-up.

For their analysis, researchers at China's Tianjin Medical University
selected 17 studies involving a total of 489,254 end stage renal disease
patients receiving dialysis and three studies that included 2,603 chronic
kidney patients not on dialysis. The subjects were treated with active
vitamin D sterols that included alfacalcidol, doxercalciferol, calcitriol,
maxacalcitol, falecalcitriol or paricalcitol. Follow-up periods ranging from
12 to 140 months.

In comparison with no treatment, subjects who received active vitamin D
compounds had a 26% lower risk of dying from all causes over follow-up.
Pooled analysis of dialysis patients associated active vitamin D therapy
with a 20% lower adjusted risk of dying and among those not on dialysis, the
risk was 41% lower compared to no treatment over follow-up. When
cardiovascular mortality was examined, active vitamin D was associated with
a 41% lower adjusted risk of death over follow-up.

"Vitamin D down regulates the renin-angiotensin system, improves insulin
secretion and sensitivity, inhibits vascular smooth-muscle cell
proliferation, protects normal endothelial cell function, modulates
inflammatory processes, inhibits anticoagulant activity, and inhibits
myocardial cell hypertrophy and proliferation," write Zhenfeng Zheng and
colleagues. "These findings suggest that vitamin D may decrease mortality
through multiple pathways."

"Large, well designed randomized trials of active vitamin D supplements with
different doses are needed to elucidate the role of vitamin D
supplementation in reducing mortality," they conclude.

Fonte: LifeExtension

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