ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND AND AIM: COVID-19 is a global public health concern. As no standard treatment has been found for it yet, several minerals and vitamins with antioxidants, immunomodulators, and antimicrobials roles can be sufficient for the immune response against the disease. The present study evaluates the serum vitamin D, calcium, and Zinc levels in patients with COVID-19. MATERIALS & METHODS: This research is a case-control study performed in May 2020 on 93 patients with COVID-19 hospitalized in a Shoushtar city hospital and on 186 healthy subjects with no symptoms of COVID-19. The serum vitamin D, calcium, and zinc levels were collected and analyzed using correlation coefficient and independent t-test via SPSS 18. RESULTS: Vitamin D levels had a significant difference between the case and control groups (p = 0.008). Serum calcium and serum zinc levels also had statistically significant differences between the two groups (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: The research results showed that serum zinc, calcium, and vitamin D levels in COVID-19 patients are lower than in the control group. The supplementation with such nutrients is a safe and low-cost measure that can help cope with the increased demand for these nutrients in risk of acquiring the COVID-19 virus.
Subject(s)
COVID-19/blood , Calcium/blood , Deficiency Diseases/blood , Nutritional Status , Vitamin D/blood , Zinc/blood , Adult , Anti-Infective Agents/blood , Antioxidants/metabolism , COVID-19/complications , COVID-19/prevention & control , Calcium/deficiency , Case-Control Studies , Cities , Deficiency Diseases/complications , Deficiency Diseases/prevention & control , Dietary Supplements , Female , Hospitalization , Hospitals , Humans , Immunologic Factors/blood , Iran , Male , Micronutrients/blood , Middle Aged , Pandemics , SARS-CoV-2 , Urban PopulationABSTRACT
IntroductionSARS-CoV-2 is spreading rapidly worldwide these days so that it has infected people in many countries. It is a zoonotic virus and the cause of COVID-19 infectious pneumonia. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared it a pandemic on January 30, 2020. Given that no standard treatment has been found for the new coronavirus so far, the present study seeks a way to reduce the incidence and severity of the disease along with health protocols. Some of the factors possibly effective in getting less infected by the SARS-CoV-2 are|taking medication supplements such as zinc, calcium, and vitamin D.Materials and methodsThis cross-sectional study was conducted from May 13 to May 30, 2020, on 93 COVID-19 patients admitted to Khatam Al-Anbia Hospital in Shushtar in southwestern Iran. Some patients' laboratory and clinical of were collected and analyzed using the Chi-squared test, the independent t-test, the Kruskal-Wallis test, and the Spearman rank-order correlation coefficient by IBM SPSS Statistics 18.0 software.FindingsThe severity of the disease (40%) of 37 patients was severe in pulmonary involvement. Serum levels of vitamin D and zinc were lower than the average in all patients. Still, the severity of COVID-19 in patients was not significantly different from their zinc serum levels (P = 0.216). Serum vitamin D was not significantly different (P = 0.102). The severity of COVID-19 in patients was significantly different according to serum calcium levels (P = 0.005). The lower the calcium level, the more severe the disease.ConclusionGiven that the supplementation's effect in preventing COVID-19 has not been confirmed and no study has been published on the appropriate dose of these supplements in COVID-19, taking economically viable calcium-rich food sources, including dairy, is recommended.