High dose Vitamin D supplementation may reduce ICU admission rates in Covid-19 patients

The recent global pandemic has gained a lot of interest, several clinical trials and studies are being conducted even after the pandemic to face the detrimental effects of the COVID-19 virus, researchers and physicians try to discover possible treatments to improve the outcome of their patients

A new study reports vitamin D supplementation was associated with reduced ICU admission and mechanical ventilation rates in patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection. However, vitamin D supplementation did not significantly affect mortality associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection. The study is published in Nutrients.

Vitamin D’s potential role in COVID-19 prevention and treatment has gained the limelight. Some studies have suggested that individuals with low levels of vitamin D may be at increased risk of severe illness from COVID-19.

A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted to evaluate the efficacy of vitamin D supplementation in COVID-19, focusing on length of hospital stay (LOS), admission to the intensive care unit (ICU), and mortality.

The key findings of the study are

• Thirteen randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were included, and the meta-analysis revealed that high-dose vitamin D supplementation showed potential benefits in reducing the length of hospital stay and ICU admission rates for patients with COVID-19.

• However, the overall effect on mortality did not reach statistical significance. While this systematic review suggests the potential benefits of high-dose vitamin D supplementation in reducing hospital stays and ICU admission in COVID-19 patients, caution is warranted due to the high heterogeneity and limitations of the included studies.

Further large-scale randomized controlled trials with consistent study characteristics are needed to provide more robust evidence regarding the therapeutic benefits of vitamin D supplementation in COVID-19 outcomes they ended.

Reference: Sîrbu AC, Sabin O, Bocșan IC, Vesa ȘC, Buzoianu AD. The Effect of Vitamin D Supplementation on the Length of Hospitalisation, Intensive Care Unit Admission, and Mortality in COVID-19-A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Nutrients. 2023 Aug 5;15(15):3470. doi: 10.3390/nu15153470.