Clinical Investigations

Relationship Between Vitamin B12 and Sensory and Motor Peripheral Nerve Function in Older Adults

  1. Kira Leishear PhD, MS1,
  2. Robert M. Boudreau PhD1,
  3. Stephanie A. Studenski MD, MPH2,
  4. Luigi Ferrucci MD, PhD3,
  5. Caterina Rosano MD, MPH1,
  6. Nathalie de Rekeneire MD, MS4,
  7. Denise K. Houston PhD5,
  8. Stephen B. Kritchevsky PhD5,
  9. Ann V. Schwartz PhD6,
  10. Aaron I. Vinik MD, PhD7,
  11. Eva Hogervorst PhD8,
  12. Kristine Yaffe MD9,
  13. Tamara B. Harris MD, MS10,
  14. Anne B. Newman MD, MPH1,2,
  15. Elsa S. Strotmeyer PhD, MPH1,*,
  16. for the Health, Aging and Body Composition Study1

Article first published online: 12 JUN 2012

DOI: 10.1111/j.1532-5415.2012.03998.x

Issue

Journal of the American Geriatrics Society

Journal of the American Geriatrics Society

Volume 60, Issue 6, pages 1057–1063, June 2012

Additional Information

How to Cite

Leishear, K., Boudreau, R. M., Studenski, S. A., Ferrucci, ., Rosano, C., de Rekeneire, N., Houston, D. K., Kritchevsky, S. B., Schwartz, A. V., Vinik, A. I., Hogervorst, E., Yaffe, K., Harris, T. B., Newman, A. B., Strotmeyer, E. S. and for the Health, Aging and Body Composition Study (2012), Relationship Between Vitamin B12 and Sensory and Motor Peripheral Nerve Function in Older Adults. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 60: 1057–1063. doi: 10.1111/j.1532-5415.2012.03998.x

Author Information

  1. 1

    Department of Epidemiology, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

  2. 2

    Division of Geriatric Medicine, Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

  3. 3

    Longitudinal Studies Section, Clinical Research Branch, National Institute on Aging, Baltimore, Maryland

  4. 4

    Section of Geriatrics, School of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut

  5. 5

    Sticht Center on Aging, School of Medicine, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, North Carolina

  6. 6

    Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California

  7. 7

    Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Medicine, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Strelitz Diabetes Center, Norfolk, Virginia

  8. 8

    Department of Human Sciences, Loughborough University, Loughborough, UK

  9. 9

    Departments of Psychiatry, Neurology and Epidemiology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California

  10. 10

    Laboratory of Epidemiology, Demography and Biometry, Intramural Research Program, National Institute of Aging, Bethesda, Maryland

*Address correspondence to Elsa S. Strotmeyer, 130 N Bellefield Avenue, Room 515, Pittsburgh, PA 15213. E-mail: StrotmeyerE@edc.pitt.edu

Publication History

  1. Issue published online: 12 JUN 2012
  2. Article first published online: 12 JUN 2012

Funded by

  • National Institute on Aging (NIA). Grant Numbers: N01-AG-6–2101, N01-AG-6–2103, N01-AG-6–2106
  • NIA Intramural Research Program of the National Institutes of Health. Grant Number: R01-AG 028050
  • National Institute of Nursing Research. Grant Number: R01-NR012459
  • University of Pittsburgh Claude D. Pepper Older Americans Independence Center. Grant Number: P30-AG024827
  • NIA. Grant Number: T32-AG-000181

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Keywords:

  • low B12;
  • deficient B12;
  • sensory peripheral nerve function;
  • motor nerve conduction;
  • older adults

Objectives

To examine whether deficient B12 status or low serum B12 levels are associated with worse sensory and motor peripheral nerve function in older adults.

Design

Cross-sectional.

Setting

Health, Aging and Body Composition Study.

Participants

Two thousand two hundred and eighty-seven adults aged 72 to 83 (mean 76.5 ± 2.9; 51.4% female; 38.3% black).

Measurements

Low serum B12 was defined as serum B12 less than 260 pmol/L, and deficient B12 status was defined as B12 less than 260 pmol/L, methylmalonic acid (MMA) greater than 271 nmol/L, and MMA greater than 2-methylcitrate. Peripheral nerve function was assessed according to peroneal nerve conduction amplitude and velocity (NCV) (motor), 1.4 g/10 g monofilament detection, average vibration threshold detection, and peripheral neuropathy symptoms (numbness, aching or burning pain, or both) (sensory).

Results

B12-deficient status was found in 7.0% of participants, and an additional 10.1% had low serum B12 levels. B12 deficient status was associated with greater insensitivity to light (1.4 g) touch (odds ratio = 1.50, 95% confidence interval = 1.06–2.13) and worse NCV (42.3 vs 43.5 m/s) (β = −1.16, P = .01) after multivariable adjustment for demographics, lifestyle factors, and health conditions. Associations were consistent for the alternative definition using low serum B12 only. No significant associations were found for deficient B12 status or the alternative low serum B12 definition and vibration detection, nerve conduction amplitude, or peripheral neuropathy symptoms.

Conclusion

Poor B12 (deficient B12 status and low serum B12) is associated with worse sensory and motor peripheral nerve function. Nerve function impairments may lead to physical function declines and disability in older adults, suggesting that prevention and treatment of low B12 levels may be important to evaluate.

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