Abstract: Objective: To investigate the correlation of indicators of bone metabolism including hydroxyvitamin D (25-OH-D), osteoprotegerin (OPG), parathyroid（PTH）, procollagen type 1 N-terminal propeptide（P1NP）, β cross-linked C-telopeptide of type 1 collagen（β-CTX）with atherosclerotic disease in elderly. Methods: A total of 163 elderly patients at Department of Geriatrics, Ruijin Hospital from January 2015 to October 2016（mean age 75.8 years）were recruited. Blood pressure, BMI, plasma glucose, renal function, blood lipids, CRP, 25-OH-D, OPG, PTH, P1NP, β-CTX were measured. Both carotid and lower extremity atherosclerosis were assessed by Doppler ultrasound,and patients were divided into 2 groups: atherosclerosis group and control group. Results: ①The mean serum level of 25-OH-D in all subjects was (47.11±17.29) nmol/L and the percentage of vitamin D deficiency was 58.1%. ②Compared with the control group, serum 25-OH-D in atherosclerosis group was significantly lower (P<0.05), while OPG and PTH were significantly higher (P<0.05). ③Atherosclerotic disease was negatively correlated with 25-OH-D （r=-0.559, P<0.05）and positively correlated with OPG（r=0.459, P<0.05）by correlation analysis. ④Logistic regression analysis showed that serum 25-OH-D and OPG were independent risk factors of atherosclerotic disease. Conclusions: Patients with atherosclerotic disease have lower serum 25-OH-D level. Early vitamin D supplementation may slow down the progression of atherosclerosis. The significantly higher serum OPG in patients with atherosclerotic disease may be due to the compensatory protective effect of body. This study reveales that status of bone turnover has no relationship with atherosclerosis, yet needs to be further investigated.

Key words: Elderly, 25-OH-D, Osteoprotegerin, Bone metabolism, Atherosclerosis