Inappropriate vitamin D supplementation among multimorbid older patients: a multicountry analysis

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Pharmacology
• Nutritional Science

Background:

• Prevalence of vitamin D supplementation in multimorbid older adults is unclear.
• Potential underuse and overuse of vitamin D supplementation require investigation.
• Risk factors for inappropriate vitamin D use in this population are not well-defined.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the prevalence of vitamin D supplementation.
• To identify rates of potential underuse and overuse of vitamin D.
• To explore risk factors associated with inappropriate vitamin D supplementation in multimorbid older adults.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional analysis of the OPERAM study involving multimorbid older patients with polypharmacy across four European countries.
• Defined potential underuse and overuse based on START criteria for prescribing omissions in older individuals.
• Employed mixed-effects logistic regression to identify factors linked to underuse and overuse.

Main Results:

• Out of 2008 patients, 41.1% received vitamin D supplementation.
• Potential underuse affected 33.9% of participants, while 10.2% experienced potential overuse.
• Increasing age and male sex were associated with underuse; polypharmacy and hospitalizations were linked to both underuse and overuse.

Conclusions:

• Approximately one-third of multimorbid older adults exhibit potential underuse of vitamin D.
• Up to 10% of this population may experience potential overuse of vitamin D supplementation.
• Targeted vitamin D supplementation strategies are necessary, considering factors like polypharmacy, hospitalizations, age, and sex.