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Vitamin D deficiency is associated with disease activity in patients with Crohn's disease
Kyoung Ho Ko1, You Sun Kim1, Bo Kyung Lee1
1Department of Internal Medicine, Seoul Paik Hospital, Inje University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Background/Aims:
Previous data suggest that vitamin D has a significant role in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). We investigated the incidence of vitamin D deficiency in Korean patients with IBD and the correlation between serum vitamin D level and disease activity.
Methods:
We retrospectively analyzed the medical records of patients with IBD whose serum vitamin D levels were checked. Deficiency of 25-hydroxyvitamin D was defined as <20 ng/mL. Disease activity was evaluated using the partial Mayo score for ulcerative colitis (≥2 defined as active disease) and Harvey-Bradshaw index for Crohn's disease (≥4 defined as active disease).
Results:
We enrolled 87 patients with IBD (UC, 45; CD, 42). Among them, 65.5% (57/87) were men, with a mean age of 44.9±15.1 years (range, 18-75 years). The mean duration of disease was 4.7±4.8 years (range, 0.1-17.1 years). Vitamin D deficiency was found in 73.6% (64/87) of patients with IBD. Patients with IBD (mean vitamin D level, 16.3±9.0 ng/mL) showed lower vitamin D level than the healthy control group (mean vitamin D level, 20.4±7.0 ng/mL), with no statistically significant difference (P=0.136). Disease activity was inversely correlated with vitamin D deficiency in patients with CD (P=0.007). However, no correlation was observed in patients with UC (P=0.134).
Conclusions:
Approximately 75% of Korean patients with IBD showed vitamin D deficiency state. Vitamin D deficiency is associated with disease activity, particularly in patients with CD.