The present study initially included 106 volunteers, elderly women living in urban or suburban Khon Kaen, Thailand. One case was excluded because of extremely high levels of alkaline phosphatase. The means (±SD) of the serum calcidiol and the PTH concentrations in the urban vs suburban groups were 31.45(±1.15) ng/mL vs 36.15(±2.4) pg/mL and 41.53(±3.94) ng/mL vs 17.43(±2.88)pg/mL, respectively. The urban group had a higher percentage and a higher risk of hypovitaminosis D and osteoporosis of the femoral neck than the suburban group, an odds ratio of more than 4 times higher.

Keywords: Calcidiol, PTH, Urban vs Suburban