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The association between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels and dental caries in US adults.

OBJECTIVES
We investigated whether 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration is independently associated with dental caries among adults in the US.


SUBJECTS AND METHODS
This investigation was a cross-sectional study. A total of 4244 participants (aged 20-80 years old) were enrolled through 2007-2008 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D was categorized into four groups based on previous studies: normal (≥75 nmol/mL), insufficient (50-74.9 nmol/mL), deficiency (25-49.9 nmol/mL), and severely deficiency (<25nmol/mL). The dependent and independent variables included dental caries, and serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D, respectively. The data was analyzed using univariate, multivariable-adjusted analyses, and sub-group analyses.


RESULTS
The fully adjusted model showed that 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels were negatively associated with dental caries after adjusting for the confounders (OR=0.93, 95%CI 0.89 to 0.98). Compared with the normal group, the likelihood of dental caries was 2.48, 1.29, and 1.43 times higher in the severely deficient group, deficient, and insufficient groups, respectively.


CONCLUSIONS
Our findings suggest that serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels are significantly associated with the occurrence of dental caries among US adults.