Efficacy of vitamin D supplementation on clinical outcomes of children with sickle cell disease

Abstract

Background Vitamin D deficiency (VDD) is a common nutritional burden among children with sickle cell disease (SCD). Aims To measure VD levels in children with SCD and to assess the safety and efficacy of its supplementation on clinical outcomes. Patients and methods This follow-up prospective study recruited 50 children and adolescents with SCD at their steady state. Patients were clinically assessed and had their complete blood count, liver and kidney function tests, serum ferritin, and serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D level assessed. Patients with VDD were treated with oral VD supplementation (6000 units daily) for 3 months and reassessed. Results A high prevalence of VDD (46%) is found in children with SCD. Those with VDD had statistically significant higher frequencies of fracture ( P =0.023), joint and bone pain ( P =0.001), sickle crisis ( P= 0.004), hospital admission ( P =0.019), and infections ( P =0.042). There was a statistically significant negative correlation between pretreatment VD levels and the number of crises ( P =0.043). After VD supplementation, there was a statistically significant improvement in VD level ( P ≤0.001) and a reduction in the number of crises ( P ≤0.001) and hospital admission rate ( P ≤0.001). Conclusion The high prevalence of VDD in young SCD patients highlights the importance of early VD supplementation that improves their clinical outcomes without affecting their safety.