Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Volume 86, Issue 3 , Pages 576-581, March 2005

Vitamin K deficiency and osteopenia in elderly women with Alzheimer’s disease

  • Yoshihiro Sato, MD

      Affiliations

    • Departments of Neurology, Mitate Hospital, Tagawa
    • Corresponding Author InformationReprint requests to Yoshihiro Sato, MD, Dept of Neurology, Mitate Hospital, 3237 Yugeta, Tagawa 826-0041, Japan
    • ,
  • Yoshiaki Honda, MD

      Affiliations

    • Departments of Neurology, Mitate Hospital, Tagawa
    • ,
  • Norimasa Hayashida, MD

      Affiliations

    • Neuropsychiatry, Mitate Hospital, Tagawa
    • ,
  • Jun Iwamoto, MD

      Affiliations

    • Department of Sport Medicine, School of Medicine, Keiko University, Tomohiro, Japan
    • ,
  • Tomohiro Kanoko, OT

      Affiliations

    • Rehabilitation Medicine, Hirosaki University School of Medicine, Hirosaki, Japan
    • Institute of Brain Science, Hirosaki University School of Medicine, Hirosaki, Japan
    • ,
  • Kei Satoh, MD

      Affiliations

    • Institute of Brain Science, Hirosaki University School of Medicine, Hirosaki, Japan
    • Vascular Biology, Hirosaki University School of Medicine, Hirosaki, Japan

Abstract 

Sato Y, Honda Y, Hayashida N, Iwamoto J, Kanoko T, Satoh K. Vitamin K deficiency and osteopenia in elderly women with Alzheimer’s disease.

Objective

To analyze the relation between vitamin K status and bone mineral density (BMD) in women with Alzheimer’s disease (AD).

Design

Cross-sectional study.

Setting

Outpatient departments of neurology and neuropsychiatry at a hospital in Japan.

Participants

One hundred women with AD (mean age, 79.8y) and 100 age-matched community dwelling controls (mean age, 80.6y).

Interventions

Not applicable.

Main outcome measures

Patients were divided into 2 groups according to the degree of dementia: the mild AD group was composed of patients with a score in Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) of 16 and above (n=42); patients in the severe AD group had MMSE scores below 15 (n=58). We assessed body mass index (BMI). BMD was measured by computed x-ray densitometry. Serum concentrations of vitamin K1, 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D3), intact parathyroid hormone (PTH), and Glu osteocalcin (OC) were measured.

Results

BMI was significantly lower in women with more severe AD. Metacarpal BMD (P<.02) and serum concentrations of vitamin K1 (P<.03) and 25(OH)D3 (P<.001) were significantly lower in the severe AD group than in the mild AD group. Serum levels of intact PTH and Glu OC in severely demented patients were higher than those with mild dementia (P<.001). Serum PTH concentration correlated negatively with serum 25(OH)D3 level (r=−.241, P=.016). Serum concentration of vitamin K1 correlated positively with that of 25(OH)D3 (r=.423, P<.001) and MMSE score (r=.353, P<.001), and negatively with Glu OC (r=−.580, P<.001).

Conclusions

In female AD patients, nutritional vitamin K1 deficiency may reduce production of fully carboxylated OC, which in turn may cause reduced BMD. Lower BMIs in more severe AD may imply the presence of general malnutrition in such a patient group.

Key words:  Alzheimer disease , Hip fracture , Osteocalcin , Osteoporosis , Rehabilitation , Vitamin K

 

 No commercial party having a direct financial interest in the results of the research supporting this article has or will confer a benefit upon the author(s) or upon any organization with which the author(s) is/are associated.

PII: S0003-9993(04)01250-X

doi:10.1016/j.apmr.2004.10.005

Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Volume 86, Issue 3 , Pages 576-581, March 2005

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