Vitamin D and antiphospholipid syndrome

Area of Science:

• Immunology
• Endocrinology
• Rheumatology

Background:

• Vitamin D (vitD) exhibits significant immunomodulatory effects.
• Low vitamin D levels (hypovitaminosis D) are linked to various systemic autoimmune diseases.
• Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) offers a unique model to study vitamin D due to its specific characteristics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare 25-OH vitamin D levels in patients with Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) and healthy donors.
• To investigate potential factors influencing vitamin D levels in APS patients, such as sun exposure and clinical manifestations.

Main Methods:

• Assessed 25-OH vitamin D levels using the LIAISON® chemiluminescent immunoassay.
• Included 115 APS patients and 128 normal healthy donors (NHD).
• Subdivided APS patients based on clinical features (thrombotic vs. obstetric) and antinuclear antibody (ANA) status.

Main Results:

• APS patients exhibited lower median vitamin D levels compared to NHD.
• The difference in vitamin D levels was most pronounced during summer.
• Thrombotic APS patients showed significantly lower vitamin D levels than obstetric APS patients (p < 0.01).

Conclusions:

• This study confirms hypovitaminosis D in APS patients, aligning them with systemic autoimmune disease cohorts.
• Hypovitaminosis D may be a contributing factor to autoimmunity in APS, not just a consequence of the disease.
• The lower vitamin D levels in thrombotic APS suggest a potential role for vitamin D supplementation in managing this aggressive phenotype.