Association of Serum Vitamin D and Calcium with Different Stages of Chronic Liver Diseases

Abstract

Introduction: Chronic liver disease (CLD) is a progressive condition characterized by liver tissue destruction, leading to complications such as cirrhosis. Vitamin D deficiency is highly prevalent in patients with CLD and is associated with skeletal and immune system impairments. This brief focuses on the impact of vitamin D deficiency in CLD and the significance of assessing vitamin D status and calcium levels for effective interventions and improved patient outcomes. Aim of the Study: The aim of this study was to investigate the association between the serum vitamin D and calcium with different stages of chronic liver diseases. Methods: This observational cross-sectional study was conducted in the Department of Gastroenterology at BSMMU in Dhaka, Bangladesh, over a period from April 2019 to March 2020. The study included 60 patients, of them 30 patients had chronic liver disease and a comparison group comprising 30 healthy attendants from the same department. Data were collected without interventions, cleaned, and analyzed using SPSS version 22.0. Ethical clearance of this study was obtained from the Institutional Review Board (IRB) of BSMMU, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Results: The study examined the association between serum vitamin D and calcium levels with different stages of chronic liver disease (CLD). Among the CLD patients, a significant proportion (63.4%) had deficient vitamin D levels compared to the healthy individuals (23.3%), and only 3.3% had sufficient levels (p = 0.007). Serum calcium levels were significantly lower in CLD patients (8.05 ± 0.76 mg/dl) compared to healthy individuals (8.81 ± 0.49 mg/dl) (p < 0.001). Furthermore, vitamin D levels were associated with the severity of liver cirrhosis, as higher Child-Turcotte-Pugh (CTP) classes had lower vitamin D levels (p = 0.009). These results indicate a potential link between vitamin D deficiency and advanced stages of chronic liver disease, emphasizing the importance of monitoring vitamin D and ......