Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: Vitamin D regulates calcium and phosphorus metabolism. Although Turkey is a sunny country, vitamin D deficiency is a major problem in pregnant mother and their infants. The purpose of this study was to evaluate vitamin D levels in mothers with or without vitamin D supplementation and their newborns’ cord bloods.

Methods: Healthy pregnant women and their healthy term babies were enrolled in the study. Levels of vitamin D, parathyroid hormone, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium and alkaline phosphatase were measured in maternal venous blood and cord blood specimens during birth. Mothers were divided into two groups receiving and no receiving vitamin D.

Results: 46 mothers and healthy babies were enrolled. Twenty-nine mothers (63%) had used vitamin D during pregnancy, while 17 (37%) did not use it. The mean vitamin D level of mothers were 8.9±4.8 mg /dl, and 5.4±2.8 mg/dl, respectively. The difference between the two groups was statistically significant (P=0.015). Significant correlation was found between the vitamin D levels of mothers’ venous blood and cord blood samples (r=0.410, P<0.001). When mothers were grouped depending on vitamin D supplementation, cord blood vitamin D levels of babies of mothers receiving vitamin D were significantly high (P=0.004). Vitamin D levels in cord blood were deficient in 17.4% (n=8), insufficient in 28.3% (n=15) and sufficient in 54.3% (n=25). Following neonatal vitamin D supplementation, it was determined deficiency in 2.2% (n=1), insufficiency in 10.9% (n=5) and sufficiency in 87% (n=40). Vitamin D levels do not affect growth in the neonatal period.

Conclusion: Vitamin D supplementation in pregnancy affects cord blood vitamin D levels. After birth 400 U/day prophylactic vitamin D is sufficient to prevent vitamin D deficiency even in those newborns of vitamin D deficient mothers.