Efficiency of the vitamin D status diagnosticator amongst geriatric patients with COVID-19

Charonnat, Caroline; Sánchez-Rodríguez, Dolores; Karras, Spyridon N.; Gezen-Ak, Duygu; Dursun, Erdinç; Annweiler, Cédric

doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/nu16060856

Efficiency of the vitamin D status diagnosticator amongst geriatric patients with COVID-19

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Charonnat C, Sanchez-Rodriguez D, Karras SN, Gezen-Ak D, Dursun E, Annweiler C. Efficiency of the vitamin D status diagnosticator amongst geriatric patients with COVID-19. Nutrients. 2024 Mar 15;16(6):856. DOI: 10.3390/nu16060856

Abstract

The vitamin D status diagnosticator (VDSD), a 16-item tool, effectively identifies hypovitaminosis D in healthy older adults and can assist in determining the need for blood tests in this population. Assessing vitamin D levels is particularly crucial in the context of COVID-19. This study aimed to evaluate the VDSD's effectiveness in pinpointing hypovitaminosis D in older adults affected by COVID-19. The research involved 102 unsupplemented geriatric inpatients consecutively admitted to the acute geriatric division of Angers University Hospital, France, with an average age of 85.0 ± 5.9 years (47.1% women). The physician-administered VDSD was conducted simultaneously with the measurement of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D). Hypovitaminosis D was defined as a serum 25(OH)D concentration of ≤75 nmol/L for vitamin D insufficiency and ≤50 nmol/L for vitamin D deficiency. Results revealed that 87 participants (85.3%) had vitamin D insufficiency and 63 (61.8%) had vitamin D deficiency. The VDSD accurately identified vitamin D deficiency with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.81 and an odds ratio (OR) of 40. However, its accuracy in identifying vitamin D insufficiency was lower (AUC = 0.57). In conclusion, the 16-item VDSD, a concise questionnaire, effectively identifies vitamin D deficiency in geriatric patients with COVID-19. This tool can be valuable in guiding the decision to administer vitamin D supplementation during the early stages of COVID-19.