Study: Supplementing Vitamin D Reduces Infections in Patients from Neurosurgical ICU

Muscle function, cardiovascular homeostasis, nerve function, immune response and many other physiological processes are influenced by Vitamin D. Furthermore, accumulated evidence suggests that vitamin D also mediates the immune system response to infection. Infections are very common in patients from neurosurgical intensive care unit.

A recent study published in the Neural Regeneration Research (Vol. 8, No. 16, 2013) detected serum vitamin D level in 15 patients with clinically suspected infection and 10 patients with confirmed infection, who came from neurosurgical intensive care unit. Serum level of 25-hydroxyvitamin D, the primary circulating form of vitamin D, was significantly decreased in patients with suspected or confirmed infection after a 2-week neurosurgical intensive care unit hospitalization, while serum level of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D, the active form of vitamin D, was significantly decreased in patients after a 4-week neurosurgical intensive care unit hospitalization. These findings suggest that vitamin D deficiency is linked to the immunological status of neurosurgical intensive care unit patients and vitamin D supplementation can improve patient's immunological status.

Source: Eurekalert