[Retinolemia, vitamin A intake, and blood pressure in the elderly]

The objective of this study was to evaluate the retinolemia and consumption of vitamin A rich foods and their association with blood pressure levels in the elderly. This is a cross-sectional study, with a systematic sample of 297 elderly subjects enrolled at the Family Health Program of Camaragibe, Pernambuco, between November/December of 2003. Vitamin A status was assessed by retinolemia (HPLC) and by the consumption of vitamin A rich foods (food frequency questionnaire). Blood pressure levels were classified according to the V Brazilian Guidelines on Hypertension. A prevalence of inadequate retinolemia (< 1.05 micromol/L) of 26.3% (CI95% 21.4-31.9) was found. The frequency of preformed vitamin A intake (> 3x/week) was lower (p = 0.000) than the provitamin A intake. The prevalence of systemic arterial hypertension (SAH) was 58.6% (CI95% 52.7-64.3). Isolated systolic hypertension was more prevalent among subjects. There was no correlation between retinolemia and vitamin A rich-food intake (p > 0.05). In addition, there was no association between blood pressure levels and vitamin A rich-food intake (p > 0.05). However, retinolemia in the elderly classified in stage 1 of SAH was higher (p = 0.02) than in the elderly with great/normal blood pressure. The findings suggest a vulnerability of these subjects to hypovitaminosis A and SAH. Nevertheless, the role of vitamin A in the endothelial function modulation and inflammatory responses associated to SAH should be addressed in future studies.