The relationship between vitamin D and PTH levels and cardiovascular risk in the elderly hypertensives

Introduction and objective: In this study, we aimed to investigate the relationship between vitamin D, parathyroid hormone (PTH) and cardiovascular risk (CVR) in hypertensive patients aged 65 years and over. Patients and methods: This study was performed with 84 hypertensive patients and 68 normotensive control group in Afyon Kocatepe University Faculty of Medicine Hospital. The determined cardiovascular risk degrees and the stages of blood pressure were compared with the levels of 25-(OH) vitamin D and PTH. Results: Mean systolic and diastolic blood pressure (BP) levels of the patients with vitamin D deficiency (VDD) were significantly higher than those without VDD (p < 0.001 for both). Mean systolic and diastolic BP levels of the patients with hyperparathyroidism were significantly higher than those without hyperparathyroidism (p = 0.012, p = 0.036, respectively). CVR was reversely correlated with vitamin D but the correlation with hyperparathyroidism did not reach statistically significant level (r = -0.752, p < 0.001) and (r = 0.210, p = 0.055), respectively. Conclusion: These results indicate that the presence of hypertension is associated with VDD, as well as the stage of hypertension contributes to insufficiency, hyperparathyroidism and increased CVR. Clinicians should be aware and perhaps more aggressive for the treatment of HT and VDD in patients over 65 years of age.