Investigating the relationship between serum vitamin D levels over time and the incidence of atrial fibrillation in The HUNT Study
Listed in
This article is not in any list yet, why not save it to one of your lists.Abstract
Background and Aims
Evidence of the association between serum vitamin D levels and atrial fibrillation (AF) is inconclusive. Thus, this study investigated the relationship between long-term average serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) levels and AF incidence in the Norwegian Trøndelag Health (HUNT) Study using a prospective cohort design and a Mendelian randomization (MR) approach.
Methods
A total of 3394 adults with two measurements of serum 25(OH)D at HUNT2 (1995-1997) and HUNT3 (2006-2008) and without AF at HUNT3 were followed up to 2021. Average serum 25(OH)D levels over ten years were categorized into <50 and ≥50 nmol/L. AF diagnoses were retrieved from hospital registers and validated by doctors. Cox regression was used to calculate hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). Furthermore, a one-sample MR was conducted among 36,554 adults who participated in both HUNT2 and HUNT3 using the Wald ratio method.
Results
During a median 12-year follow-up, 304 AF cases were diagnosed. Serum 25(OH)D levels <50.0 nmol/L were associated with a 27% reduced incidence of AF (HR 0.73, 95% CI 0.57 to 0.93) compared with ≥50 nmol/L after adjustment for confounders. A genetically determined 10 nmol/L decrease in the serum 25(OH)D levels was associated with a 7% reduced incidence of AF (HR 0.93, 95% CI 0.86 to 1.00) in the one-sample MR. Sensitivity analyses supported this association.
Conclusions
Using both traditional observational and one-sample MR approaches, the study suggested a consistently positive association between long-term average serum 25(OH)D levels and incidence of AF in the Norwegian HUNT population.
