Table 1.
Baseline Characteristics by Change in Vitamin B12
| Stay Normal (n = 313) | Low to Normal (n = 89) | Normal to Low (n = 60) | Stay Low (n = 202) | p Value | |
| Age (y) | 71.7 ± 5.9 | 72.4 ± 7.1 | 71.8 ± 5.6 | 73.1 ± 6.4* | .19 |
| Male (%) | 33.6 | 43.8 | 56.7† | 54.5* | <.0001 |
| Diabetes mellitus (%) | 15.0 | 5.6‡ | 14.3 | 9.6 | .06 |
| Former smoker (%) | 24.6 | 25.8 | 23.3 | 29.7 | .58 |
| Alcohol use (g/d) | 11.5 ± 16.2 | 17.3 ± 21.9‡ | 19.0 ± 19.1† | 20.8 ± 27.1* | .0002 |
| Physical activity level | .47 | ||||
| Sedentary (%) | 15.1 | 14.6 | 18.3 | 11.4 | |
| Light (%) | 45.3 | 52.8 | 43.3 | 43.8 | |
| BMI (kg/m2) | 27.8 ± 4.2 | 27.6 ± 4.1 | 27.4 ± 3.3 | 27.6 ± 4.2 | .92 |
| PAD (%) | 6.3 | 11.0 | 7.3 | 6.4 | .50 |
| Creatinine (mg/dL) | 0.40 ± 0.50 | 0.34 ± 0.50 | 0.29 ± 0.46 | 0.35 ± 0.48 | .31 |
| IL-6 (pg/mL) | 3.2 ± 2.1 | 3.2 ± 2.3 | 3.3 ± 2.0 | 3.6 ± 2.5 | .57 |
| TNF-α (pg/mL) | 4.8 ± 3.0 | 4.6 ± 2.0 | 4.7 ± 2.5 | 5.1 ± 3.9 | .81 |
| Folate (nmol/L) | 8.1 ± 4.8 | 6.6 ± 3.6‡ | 7.8 ± 3.8 | 6.8 ± 3.4* | .0006 |
| Vitamin B6 (nmol/L) | 32.5 ± 27.3 | 28.3 ± 14.2 | 28.7 ± 15.7 | 25.4 ± 13.1* | .06 |
| Hcy (μmol/L) | 13.7 ± 3.9 | 15.0 ± 5.3‡ | 14.9 ± 3.9† | 16.9 ± 7.8*,§ | <.0001 |
| Vitamin B12 (pmol/L) | 480.2 ± 295.2 | 204.1 ± 40.2‡ | 348.6 ± 147.6†,‖ | 177.7 ± 53.2*,§,¶ | <.0001 |
| Change in B12 (pmol/L) | 8.5 ± 320.0 | 148.6 ± 170.2‡ | −135.9 ± 153.5†,‖ | −1.4 ± 51.3§,¶ | <.0001 |
Notes: p < .05 for * = Stay Low versus Stay Normal; † = Normal to Low versus Stay Normal; ‡ = Low to Normal versus Stay Normal; § = Stay Low versus Low to Normal; ‖ = Normal to Low versus Low to Normal; ¶ = Stay Low versus Normal to Low. Low B12 = <260 pmol/L; BMI = body mass index; Hcy = homocysteine; IL-6 = interleukin 6; PAD = peripheral arterial disease; TNF-α = tumor necrosis factor-alpha.