POSITIVE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN SERUM VITAMIN K LEVEL AND BONE MINERAL DENSITY

2005

Introduction: Vitamin K is well known for its role in the synthesis of many blood coagulation factors. Also, vitamin K-dependent proteins are very important for bone and vascular health. Vitamin K is known to influence bone metabolism by facilitating the synthesis of osteocalcin because is required for the γ-carboxylation of specific glutamic acid residues, wich in turn, allows a firm binding of calcium ions. The bone mineral density decreases drastically after menopause. Recent studies have been shown that vitamin k influences bone mineral density in osteoporotic people and also actually reduce fracture rates. Many factors influence the individual risk of osteoporosis: genetic predispositi…