Research Information System
PEDIATRICS, vol.133, no.1, 2014 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
OBJECTIVE: Vitamin B-12 is involved in the production of adrenaline from noradrenaline. It is the cofactor involved in catecholamine degradation and plays a role in myelin synthesis. The current study aimed to investigate the association between vitamin B-12 levels and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) during adolescence when accelerated myelin synthesis increases the vitamin B-12 need. METHODS: One hundred twenty-five patients (mean age 11.1 +/- 2.3 years; 60% female) reporting short-term loss of consciousness and diagnosed with vasovagal syncope based on anamnesis with a normal distribution and 50 control subjects (mean age 10.94 +/- 2.5 years, 62% female) were included in this study. Serum vitamin B-12, folic acid, and ferritin levels were measured prospectively in addition to other tests. We defined vitamin B-12 deficiency as a serum level <300 pg/mL. (1-4) RESULTS: Vitamin B-12 levels were significantly lower in the patient group compared with the control group (47.2% vs 18%, P < 001). In the patient group, children with the POTS pattern had significantly lower vitamin B-12 levels compared with children without the POTS response (P =.03). CONCLUSIONS: Vitamin B-12 deficiency in patients with POTS may lead to sympathetic nervous system baroreceptor dysfunction.