Serum vitamin D in Indian children with vernal keratoconjunctivitis / 国际眼科杂志(Guoji Yanke Zazhi)

ABSTRACT

@#AIM: To determine the vitamin D levels in vernal keratoconjunctivitis(VKC)patients in Indian population.<p>METHODS:A total of 30 non-atopic healthy children and 30 children having VKC were included in the study. The serum vitamin D levels and the time spent outside was compared between the two groups(<i>P</i><0.05).<p>RESULTS: The mean serum vitamin D level in the VKC group was significantly lower(mean 19.17±10.76 ng/mL)compared to the control group(mean 31.19±9.09 ng/mL)(<i>P</i>=0.0003). The vitamin D levels were found to be deficient(10-20 ng/mL)in 43.33%, whereas severe deficiency(<10 ng/mL)was found in 20% of the VKC patients. The deficiency of vitamin D correlated with the level of severity of VKC(<i>P</i><0.02). The time spent outside in the VKC group was 1.07±0.76h, whereas in the healthy subjects it was 2.08±0.72h(<i>P</i><0.0001), and it showed a significant correlation with the serum 25(OH)D3 levels(<i>r</i>=0.478, <i>P</i><0.001).<p>CONCLUSION:The study shows that children with VKC had a significantly lower serum vitamin D levels as compared to the healthy children which correlated with time spent outside. The severity of VKC also correlated with the severity of vitamin D deficiency which suggests that vitamin D plays an important role in maintaining ocular surface health.