A new study shows that more than 80 percent of patients hospitalized for COVID-19 in Spain had a deficiency of vitamin D.
The study, conducted at the University Hospital Marques de Valdecilla, analysed 216 patients admitted to hospital for coronavirus, and found that 80 percent of them showed lower levels of vitamin D when compared to a control group of people of similar a demographic makeup living in the same area.
Details of the study were published in the Endocrine Society’s Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism on Tuesday.
The control group of 197 people, which was tested against the hospitalized patients, were given oral vitamin D supplements for more than there months before their admissions were analyzed as a separate group, according to CTV News.
The study also found that vitamin D levels in men were “especially lower” compared to their female counterparts. COVID-19 patients with vitamin D deficiency also presented raised serum levels of inflammatory markers including ferritin and D-dimer, according to SciTechDaily.
The study also found “compelling evidence” for an association between low vitamin D levels and infections from influenza, HIV, and hepatitis C.
