A Prospective Case Control Study Comparing Serum Vitamin D Levels in Patients with and without Alopecia Areata

ABSTRACT

Background@#Alopecia areata (AA) is the most common cause of non-scarring alopecia.1 Many studies reported decreased serum vitamin D levels in patients with AA compared to healthy subjects.1-8 This study aimed to assess the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in patients with AA compared to patients without AA. The secondary objective was to determine the correlation between vitamin D deficiency with disease severity and the pattern of AA.@*Methods@#This research was a case control study involving patients with AA from the dermatology clinic in Hospital Raja Permaisuri Bainun. All the subjects and controls were age, sex and Fitzpatrick skin type matched. Serum vitamin D (25-hydroxyvitamin D) (25 OHD) levels were obtained and analysed by the chemiluminescence immunoassay method. AA severity was assessed by Severity of Alopecia Tool (SALT) score.@*Results@#A total of 50 subjects, out of which 25 patients with AA and 25 controls, were recruited. The median serum vitamin D level was 54.15 nmol/L (IQR 139) in the AA group and 53.79 nmol/L (IQR 64.47) in the control group. However, the difference was not statistically significant (p=0.823). The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency was higher in the AA group (12%) compared to the control group (4%), but it was not statistically significant (p=0.304). There was no statistical significance in serum vitamin D levels with disease severity (SALT score) (p=0.171) and pattern of AA (p=0.657).@*Conclusion@#There was no statistical difference in the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency between patients with and without AA. There was no correlation between serum vitamin D levels with disease severity and pattern of AA. Further studies using a larger sample size is needed to justify measuring serum vitamin D levels in patients with AA.