Relationship between Cardiovascular Diseases and Vitamin D Deficiency

Relationship between Cardiovascular Diseases and Vitamin D Deficiency
Seyyed Hossein Heidari,^1,* Mehrdad Ostadpoor,² Nasser Yazdani,³
1. Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, Islamic Azad University, Shahrekord Branch, Shahrekord, Iran
2. Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, Islamic Azad University, Shahrekord Branch, Shahrekord, Iran
3. Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, Islamic Azad University, Shahrekord Branch, Shahrekord, Iran
Introduction: Cardiovascular risk factors, such as arterial hypertension, obesity, dyslipidemia or diabetes mellitus, as well as cardiovascular diseases, including myocardial infarction, coronary artery disease or stroke, are the most prevalent diseases and account for major causes of death worldwide. Vitamin D (25-OH-cholecalciferol) deficiency, as well as cardiovascular diseases and related risk factors are highly prevalent worldwide. The scope of this review is to provide a brief overview on basic vitamin D metabolism and vitamin D deficiency. This study reviews the most recent studies evaluating the relationship between vitamin D and the presence of cardiovascular risk factors. This underlines the importance of clarifying the role of vitamin D in the context of cardiovascular diseases.
Methods: In the current study, key words including vitamin D (25-OH-cholecalciferol), cardiovascular disease and cardiovascular risk factors were reviewed from the list of Mesh and other credible websites, including PubMed, Science Direct and Google Scholar, over the past two decades and the desired data was organized.
Results: Vitamin D exerts biological effects on cardiac myocytes, stimulating calcium-ATPase activity and calcium uptake in cardiac myocytes. Lack of vitamin D could cause diastolic dysfunction. vitamin D deficiency stimulates systemic and vascular inflammation, enabling atherogenesis. on the other hand, as already mentioned, hypertension is also associated with lack of vitamin D, due to activation of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, enabling endothelial dysfunction, the first step in plaque formation. Vascular smooth muscle cells and endothelial cells express receptors for vitamin D, enabling conversion of calcidiol to calcitriol and vitamin D is involved in regulation of growth and proliferation of smooth muscle cells and cardiomyocytes. Vitamin D inhibits the proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells by acute influx of calcium into the cell and increases calcification of smooth muscle cells. Murine models, lacking vitamin D receptor, exhibit increased ventricular mass, higher atrial natriuretic peptides and impaired homeostasis of metalloproteinases and fibroblasts, leading to ventricular dilatation and impaired electromechanical coupling.
Conclusion: Maintaining an optimal vitamin D serum level seems important not only for calcium homeostasis but also for cardiovascular risk, blood pressure control, prevalence of stroke, metabolic syndrome, and peripheral artery disease. Observational data support the relationship between vitamin D status and cardiovascular diseases and vitamin D deficiency can be considered a cardiovascular risk marker.
Keywords: vitamin D (25-OH-cholecalciferol), cardiovascular disease, cardiovascular risk factors.