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Short Report
Petre Cristian Ilie
The Queen Elizabeth Hospital Foundation Trust, King’s Lynn
Corresponding Author
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This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License. Read Full License
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COVID-19, caused by the virus SARS-CoV-2, is a global pandemic, and no vaccines or curative treatments currently exist for the disease. Low levels of vitamin D, a nutrient found in fish, cheese, eggs, and many other foods, have been linked to an increased risk of various infectious diseases, including tuberculosis, HIV, fungal infections, and sepsis. This study evaluated whether blood vitamin D levels are associated with the number of COVID-19 cases and mortality. The researchers compared the mean levels of vitamin D in each country along with the number of cases of COVID-19 and COVID-19-related deaths per 1 million individuals. Analyses were limited to cases identified as of March 20, 2020 in European countries only. The results showed that low average vitamin D levels in a country are associated with a relatively high number of COVID-19 cases and deaths registered in that country. Because this study is a cross-sectional analysis, it does not evaluate the vitamin D levels specifically in infected individuals. Additionally, the number of SARS-CoV-2 tests performed remains limited in many areas. However, the data suggest that higher vitamin D levels may have a protective effect against COVID-19.
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Background/Aims: WHO declared SARS-Cov-2 a global pandemic. The aims of this paper are to assess if there is any association between mean levels of vitamin D in various countries and cases respectively mortality caused by COVID-19.
Methods: We have identified the mean levels of vitamin D for 20 Europeans Countries for which we have also got the data regarding the morbidity and mortality caused by COVID-19.
Results: The mean level of vitamin D (average 56mmol/L, STDEV 10.61) in each country was strongly associated with the number of cases/1M (mean 295.95, STDEV 298.73 p=0.004, respectively with the mortality/1M (mean 5.96, STDEV 15.13, p < 0.00001).
Discussion: Vitamin D levels are severely low in the aging population especially in Spain, Italy and Switzerland. This is also the most vulnerable group of population for COVID-19.
Conclusions: We believe, that we can advise Vitamin D supplementation to protect against SARS-CoV2 infection.
Keywords
COVID-19, SARS-Cov2, Corona virus, vitamin D, cholecalciferol, calcitriol
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This is a preprint, a preliminary version of a manuscript that has not completed peer review at a journal. Research Square does not conduct peer review prior to posting preprints. The posting of a preprint on this server should not be interpreted as an endorsement of its validity or suitability for dissemination as established information or for guiding clinical practice.
Short Report
Petre Cristian Ilie
The Queen Elizabeth Hospital Foundation Trust, King’s Lynn
Corresponding Author
Badges
Prescreen
This manuscript passed our Prescreen assessment
Complete author information
Appropriate declaration statements
Potential risks to human health
Prescreen
History
CURRENT STATUS: Posted
View the published article at Aging Clinical and Experimental Research.
Version 1
Posted 08 Apr, 2020
Community comments: 68
Metrics
Comments: 0
PDF Downloads: ...
HTML Views: ...
Subject Areas
Infectious Diseases
License:
This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License. Read Full License
View the published article at Aging Clinical and Experimental Research.
View Research Highlight
Research Highlight
created by Research Square
COVID-19, caused by the virus SARS-CoV-2, is a global pandemic, and no vaccines or curative treatments currently exist for the disease. Low levels of vitamin D, a nutrient found in fish, cheese, eggs, and many other foods, have been linked to an increased risk of various infectious diseases, including tuberculosis, HIV, fungal infections, and sepsis. This study evaluated whether blood vitamin D levels are associated with the number of COVID-19 cases and mortality. The researchers compared the mean levels of vitamin D in each country along with the number of cases of COVID-19 and COVID-19-related deaths per 1 million individuals. Analyses were limited to cases identified as of March 20, 2020 in European countries only. The results showed that low average vitamin D levels in a country are associated with a relatively high number of COVID-19 cases and deaths registered in that country. Because this study is a cross-sectional analysis, it does not evaluate the vitamin D levels specifically in infected individuals. Additionally, the number of SARS-CoV-2 tests performed remains limited in many areas. However, the data suggest that higher vitamin D levels may have a protective effect against COVID-19.
View Research Highlight
Background/Aims: WHO declared SARS-Cov-2 a global pandemic. The aims of this paper are to assess if there is any association between mean levels of vitamin D in various countries and cases respectively mortality caused by COVID-19.
Methods: We have identified the mean levels of vitamin D for 20 Europeans Countries for which we have also got the data regarding the morbidity and mortality caused by COVID-19.
Results: The mean level of vitamin D (average 56mmol/L, STDEV 10.61) in each country was strongly associated with the number of cases/1M (mean 295.95, STDEV 298.73 p=0.004, respectively with the mortality/1M (mean 5.96, STDEV 15.13, p < 0.00001).
Discussion: Vitamin D levels are severely low in the aging population especially in Spain, Italy and Switzerland. This is also the most vulnerable group of population for COVID-19.
Conclusions: We believe, that we can advise Vitamin D supplementation to protect against SARS-CoV2 infection.
Figure 1
Figure 2
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