Hypovitaminosis D predicts the onset of orthostatic hypotension in older adults

• Several cross sectional studies demonstrated that hypovitaminosis D is associated with OH.
• Our longitudinal study confirms that hypovitaminosis D could be considered as risk factor for OH.
• The association was significant only in women.

A number of small cross sectional studies have demonstrated that hypovitaminosis D (represented by low 25 hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) levels) is associated with orthostatic hypotension (OH). We investigated if hypovitaminosis D is associated with the onset of OH in older adults over a follow-up of 4.4 years. 25OHD was categorized using sex-specific quartiles; OH was defined as a drop of ≤20 mm Hg in systolic or ≤10 mm Hg in diastolic blood pressure <3 minutes of standing. Among 1308 elderly without OH at baseline, using an adjusted logistic regression analysis and taking those with higher baseline serum 25OHD as reference, there was a significant increase in the onset of OH in those with lower serum 25OHD levels. The association was significant only in women when we stratified by sex. In conclusion, hypovitaminosis D predicts the onset of OH in older adults, particularly in women.