Vitamin D Deficiency and Critical Illness

Objective To determine the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in critically ill children and assess its association with severity of illness and other outcomes associated with critical illness. Methods Eighty children aged 2mo to 12y, admitted with medical conditions to the pediatric intensive care unit of a tertiary care hospital were enrolled in this prospective observational study. Vitamin D levels were obtained during the first hour of stay. Severity score was assessed using the Pediatric Risk of Mortality III (PRISM III) within first 12 h of admission. Results Vitamin D deficiency {25-hydroxy vitamin D [25(OH) D] levels<20 ng/ml} was observed in 67 (83.8 %) children. Vitamin D deficient children had significantly higher PRISM III score compared to vitamin D sufficient children [10 (IQR: 5-15) vs. 6 (IQR: 3-7); p 0.0099]. 25(OH) D levels had a significant negative correlation with PRISM III score (rho -0.3747; p 0.0006). Conclusions Vitamin D appears to be of utmost importance in critically ill children.