Ambika Prasad Dash, Sushree Sangeeta Kar
BACKGROUND
Vitamin D is necessary for calcium homeostasis, skeletal growth, development, maintenance and overall wellbeing. It is synthesized in the body by exposure to UV-B rays of the sunlight by the skin. India though is a tropical country with no scarcity of sunlight; vitamin D deficiency/insufficiency is more common than is suspected.
The study was designed to assess vitamin D levels in patients complaining of non-specific chronic pain of more than six months duration in urban population.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
A total number of 50 subjects in the age group of 20 to 60 years were included in the study. Out of the study population, 14 were males and 36 were females. Plasma level of 25-OH-D was assessed by chemiluminescence method after overnight fasting.
RESULTS
We found in the male study population, 14.28% were vitamin D deficient and 64.28% were vitamin D insufficient. In the female study population, 19.44% were vitamin D deficient and 72.22% had vitamin D insufficiency. Improving vitamin D status by counselling them for more midday sunlight exposure and taking supplementation of vitamin D would certainly benefit them.
CONCLUSION
Vitamin D insufficiency/deficiency is mischievously more prevalent than is previously thought. As it mimics a wide spectrum of clinical conditions such as chronic pain, diabetes mellitus, myopathies, heart disease, stroke, depression and cancer in different organs like breast, prostate, colon and ovary in addition to well associated or established conditions like osteoporosis, osteoarthritis and periodontal diseases; a high level of suspicion should be maintained.
