Official websites use. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Correspondence to: Afef Bahlous, 13, place Pasteur, B. Vitamin D deficiency is one of the most common medical conditions worldwide.
In Tunisia, several studies evaluated Vitamin D status, but this was concerning specific populations pregnant women, obese or diabetic patients and children with asthma. The only study that evaluated Vitamin D status in a healthy Tunisian population was conducted by Meddeb and associeties in The update of data available, based on the currently recommended limits, is necessary.
This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of hypovitaminosis D in a healthy Tunisian population, and correlate the values with potential risk factors. It was conducted on Tunisian healthy subjects. Data collected included clinical characteristics and dietary intakes. We measured hydroxyvitamin D 25 OH D , parathyroid hormone PTH , glycemia, creatinine, calcium, phosphorus, and alkaline phosphatase concentrations.
The prevalence of hypovitaminosis D and vitamin D deficiency were respectively The main factors that were significantly associated with low vitamin D levels in our multivariate analysis were veiling, living in rural areas and sunscreen use. However, sex, age, socioeconomic level, phototype, solar exposure score, smoking and bone mass index, were not statistically associated with hypovitaminosis D.
Given the high prevalence of vitamin D, an adapted health policy is essential. A widespread vitamin D supplementation and food fortification seems to be necessary in Tunisia. Keywords: healthy volunteers, parathyroid hormone, prevalence, Tunisia, vitamin D deficiency.
