Vitamin B6 deficiency and diseases in elderly people – a study in nursing homes

BMC Geriatrics

Table 3 The participants’ diseases and comparisons between participants with and without B6 deficiency

Variable	All participants n=61	Participants with p-PLP deficiency n=30	Participants with normal p-PLP n=31	p-value
Gastrointestinal pain/ discomfort¹	0 (0–6)	0 (0–4)	0 (0–6)	0.288
Bowel function¹	0 (0–3)	0 (0–2)	0 (0–3)	0.167
Constipation¹ (n=59)	2 (0–5)	2 (0–4)	2 (0–5)	0.336
Diarrhoea¹	0 (0–2)	0 (0–2)	0 (0–2)	1.000
Constipation	33 (54.1%)	17 (56.7%)	16 (51.6%)	0.689
Diarrhoea	6 (9.8%)	4 (13.3%)	2 (6.5%)	0.529
Other abdominal diseases²	15 (24.6%)	5 (16.7%)	10 (32.3%)	0.198
Cancer	8 (13.1%)	3 (10.0%)	5 (16.1%)	0.530
Cardiovascular diseases³	49 (80.3%)	25 (83.3%)	24 (77.4%)	0.607
Cerebrovascular disease	20 (32.8%)	11 (36.7%)	9 (29.0%)	0.565
Hypertension (needing treatment)	28 (45.9%)	18 (60.0%)	10 (32.3%)	0.040
Venous thromboembolism	4 (6.6%)	3 (10.0%)	1 (3.2%)	0.310
Haematological diseases⁴	4 (6.6%)	2 (6.7%)	2 (6.5%)	1.000
Dementia	48 (78.7%)	24 (80.0%)	24 (77.4%)	0.852
Parkinson’s disease	2 (3.3%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (6.5%)	0.206
Cognitively impaired⁵	59 (96.7%)	30 (100%)	29 (93.5%)	0.206
Psychiatric diseases⁶	31 (50.8%)	15 (50.0%)	16 (51.6%)	0.929
Musculoskeletal diseases⁷	23 (37.7%)	12 (40.0%)	11 (35.5%)	0.796
Pulmonary diseases⁸	12 (19.7%)	5 (16.7%)	7 (22.6%)	0.607
Diabetes	5 (8.2%)	2 (6.7%)	3 (9.7%)	0.762
Thyroid disease	7 (11.5%)	3 (10.0%)	4 (12.9%)	0.803
Allergy	4 (6.6%)	3 (10.0%)	1 (3.2%)	0.310

¹ The variables for gastrointestinal pain/ discomfort, bowel function, constipation and diarrhoea were graded 0–12, 0–4, 0–9, and 0–5 respectively.
² Biliary or hepatic disease, previous abdominal surgery, other abdominal disease.
³ Heart disease, peripheral circulatory dysfunction, hypertension, stroke.
⁴ Anaemia, leukaemia.
⁵ Unable to give informed consent, dementia, use of anti-dementia drugs.
⁶ Psychosis, schizophrenia, neurosis, depression, anxiety.
⁷ Osteoporosis, Bechterew’s disease, arthritis, osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia.
⁸ Recurrent pulmonary infections, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
The results are given as median (range) or number (percent). p-values indicate the difference between the groups with and without B6 deficiency. n=61 if not specified.

ISSN: 1471-2318