Vitamin D and hypertension: an update and review

Vitamin D deficiency and hypertension are highly prevalent. This review will discuss the association between vitamin D deficiency and blood pressure.

During the past several years multiple prospective cohorts and randomized studies have been published. Recent studies have focused mostly on 25-hydroxy vitamin D, but a small number of trials used active vitamin D analog compounds.

Data from cross-sectional studies report that low 25-hydroxy vitamin D is associated with higher systolic blood pressure and higher incidence of hypertension. Large observational studies show a weaker, yet similar association, but they have not largely accounted for the change in vitamin D levels over time. Randomized control trials conflict with observational data probably due to differences in populations studied, doses of vitamin D used, and unmeasured confounders. Further research is needed before clinical practice recommends vitamin D prescription as treatment for hypertension in the general population.