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Vitamin D status of pediatric epilepsy patients and evaluation of affecting factors

Serap Bilge1, Sema Nur Taşkın2

  • 1Department of Pediatric Neurology, Ministry of Health, Children Hospital of Diyarbakır, Diyarbakır, Turkey. sarabsmustafa@hotmail.com.

Italian Journal of Pediatrics
|February 9, 2025
PubMed

Insights

Antiseizure medications can lead to vitamin D deficiency in children with epilepsy. Factors like the number and type of antiseizure drugs, epilepsy duration, and MRI findings influence vitamin D levels.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Neurology
  • Endocrinology
  • Clinical Pharmacology

Background:

  • Antiseizure medications (ASMs) are associated with abnormal vitamin D status in epilepsy patients.
  • Hypovitaminosis D is a significant concern in children undergoing ASM treatment.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To identify risk factors for hypovitaminosis D (vitamin D deficiency) in pediatric epilepsy patients receiving ASMs.
  • To analyze the relationship between ASM use and vitamin D levels in children.

Main Methods:

  • A cross-sectional retrospective cohort study involving 127 pediatric epilepsy patients treated with ASMs from December 2021 to December 2022.
  • Analysis of demographic data, seizure types, diet, physical activity, duration of epilepsy, and types of ASMs used.
  • Measurement of serum 25(OH)D levels.

Main Results:

  • Nearly half (47%) of the pediatric epilepsy patients studied had vitamin D deficiency (serum 25(OH)D < 20 ng/mL).
  • Vitamin D levels were significantly lower in patients treated with enzyme-inducing ASMs (21.76 ± 19.7 ng/mL) and combined ASMs (13.96 ± 7.9 ng/mL) compared to non-enzyme-inducing ASMs (27.6 ± 12.2 ng/mL) (p < 0.001).
  • Mean serum 25(OH)D level was 24.2 ± 14.2 ng/mL during winter/autumn.

Conclusions:

  • The number of ASMs, use of enzyme-inducing ASMs, epilepsy duration, and MRI findings are crucial factors affecting vitamin D status in pediatric epilepsy patients.
  • These findings highlight the need for monitoring vitamin D levels in children with epilepsy on ASMs.
Abstract

Keywords:
EpilepsyPediatric patientsVitamin D

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