Vitamin D Deficiency Associated With Cognitive Functioning in Psychotic Disorders

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Psychiatry
• Nutritional Science

Background:

• Cognitive dysfunction is a primary characteristic of psychotic disorders, significantly impairing daily life.
• While vitamin D deficiency is associated with cognitive issues, its specific impact on individuals with psychotic disorders remains under-researched.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between vitamin D deficiency and cognitive functions in patients with psychotic disorders.
• To compare cognitive performance and vitamin D levels between patients and healthy controls.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional study involving 225 patients with psychotic disorders and 159 healthy controls.
• Cognitive assessment using a test battery, clinical evaluation, and serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] measurements.
• Multiple regression models analyzed the effect of vitamin D deficiency (serum 25(OH)D < 25 nmol/L) on processing speed, verbal learning, verbal memory, and executive functioning.

Main Results:

• Vitamin D deficiency was significantly associated with reduced processing speed and verbal fluency in patients with psychotic disorders.
• These associations remained significant after controlling for age, ethnicity, IQ, patient status, and substance/alcohol abuse.
• Negative symptoms in patients appeared to moderate the association between vitamin D deficiency and these cognitive domains.

Conclusions:

• The findings suggest a link between vitamin D deficiency and specific cognitive deficits in psychotic disorders.
• Further large-scale randomized controlled trials are warranted to determine if vitamin D supplementation can improve cognition in this population.