Quality of life is impaired not only in vitamin D deficient but also in vitamin D-insufficient pre-menopausal women

Abstract

Background: Vitamin D deficiency may be more common in pre-menopausal women than previously thought and it may impair quality of life (QoL). Aim: The aim of this study is to evaluate QoL in pre-menopausal women with vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency. Subjects and methods: This is a cross-sectional study in which subjects were enrolled between September 1st and November 30th, 2011. Healthy premenopausal women with weakness, fatigue and non-specific pain were assigned into three groups according to their 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25-OHD) levels: <= 20 ng/ml (vitamin D deficient, no.=30), 21-29 ng/ml (vitamin D insufficient, no.=30) and 30 ng/ml (vitamin D sufficient, no.=20). Short form-36 (SF-36) scores, age, calcium (Ca), phosphorus (P), and PTH levels were compared among the groups and correlations of SF-36 scores with age, serum 25-OHD, Ca, P, and PTH were done. Results: There were significant differences among the groups with regard to PTH (p=0.008), physical component score (p=0.02), mental component score (p=0.035), physical functioning score (p=0.0001), and vitality score (p=0.05). Apart from PTH and physical functioning score, the results were significant when vitamin D-insufficient and -sufficient women were compared. Serum 25-OHD, but not PTH was correlated with some of the scales of SF-36. Conclusions: Some components of QoL are impaired not only in vitamin D deficient but also in insufficient pre-menopausal women, and impairment is related to 25-OHD rather than PTH levels. (C) 2013, Editrice Kurtis