Research paper
Vitamin K Supplementation in Postmenopausal Women with Osteopenia (ECKO Trial): A Randomized Controlled Trial
Study answer
What this study found
Daily 5 mg vitamin K1 did not prevent age-related bone loss at the lumbar spine or total hip over 2 years. Lumbar spine BMD changed by -1.28% with vitamin K1 versus -1.22% with placebo (p = 0.84), and total hip BMD changed by -0.69% versus -0.88% (p = 0.51). Vitamin K1 markedly increased serum vitamin K1 and reduced undercarboxylated osteocalcin, but did not clearly reduce bone resorption. Clinical fractures were fewer in the vitamin K1 group (9 vs 20 at 2 years; HR 0.41, 95% CI 0.15 to 1.18, p = 0.08; HR 0.45, 95% CI 0.20 to 0.98, p = 0.04 at 4 years), and cancers were also fewer (3 vs 12;…
- Study & population
- Single-center randomized, placebo-controlled trial in postmenopausal women with osteopenia in Toronto, Canada.
- Intervention
- Vitamin K1 (phylloquinone) was given orally at 5 mg daily for 2 years, with extension of follow-up to 4 years for early enrollees.
- Key limitation
- The trial was not powered for fracture or cancer outcomes, so those apparent benefits are uncertain.
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Open PDFOriginal abstract
Background Vitamin K has been widely promoted as a supplement for decreasing bone loss in postmenopausal women, but the long-term benefits and potential harms are unknown. This study was conducted to determine whether daily high-dose vitamin K1 suppl…