The status of serum vitamin D in patients attending a general rheumatology clinic in the UK

Abstract

Vitamin D deficiency may be involved in the pathogenesis of several inflammatory conditions. This study aimed to determine the status of vitamin D in the rheumatology patients who were diagnosed with different rheumatic, inflammatory and non-inflammatory diseases. In this cross-sectional observational study, we reviewed the levels of serum vitamin D in patients who attended the general rheumatology clinics for the first time between May 2012 and October 2012. A total of 61 patients were included in this study. Twenty-five patients (41 %) had vitamin D insufficiency and two patients (3.3 %) were vitamin D deficient. Sixteen patients had an inflammatory condition and vitamin D was low in five patients (31 %). Among the 45 patients who had a non-inflammatory rheumatic condition, 20 patients (44 %) had low vitamin D. There was no significant statistical difference (P = 0.3) in the incidence of low vitamin D between the two groups. We found no significant correlation either between CRP and vitamin D (r = -0.02 (95 % confidence interval -0.28 to 0.23), P = 0.8). In this limited study, which was undertaken in the summer months, we concluded that there was no significant difference in vitamin D status between patients with inflammatory and non-inflammatory rheumatic conditions.