Prevalence of vitamin d deficiency in patients referred to a tertiary care hospital in Punjab---a pilot study

Abstract

Majority of population of India lives in areas receiving ample sunshine throughout the year. Despite this fact various studies have shown wide prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in our country in all ages and both sexes. The present pilot study was aimed at studying the prevalence of deficiency of this vitamin in the population of Punjab. Levels of vitamin D were analysed on a chemiluminiscent auto analyser in serum samples randomly collected from patients who visited the OPD of our hospital with nonspecific complaints like fatigue & body aches. A total of 209 patients were included in this study out of which there were 188 female and 21 male patients. Out of the total 188 female patients 56.9% had insufficient levels of vitamin D, 36.2% had frank deficiency & only 6.9% had sufficient levels. Vitamin D deficiency was present in 28.6% of the males, while 57.1% had insufficient levels & 14% had sufficient levels. The present study gives us a preliminary estimate of the wide extent of prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in this Punjab belt especially in the female population. This study will act as a guideline for conducting further studies on a larger scale to get a wider picture of prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in our country.