Impact of Low Vitamin D Levels on COVID-19-Related Hospitalization and Mortality: Results From a National Cohort of Veterans Affairs Patients
2021 Integrative Medicine & Health Symposium Abstracts April 13
Karen Seal karen.seal at va.gov , Daniel Bertenthal and Evan Carey
1San Francisco VA Health Care System and University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California
2San Francisco VA Health Care System, San Francisco, California
3Center of Innovation for Veteran-Centered and Value-Driven Care, St. Louis, Missouri
4Saint Louis University Center for Health Outcomes Research, St. Louis, Missouri
Objective
This study investigated whether low vitamin D levels are independently associated with COVID-19-related hospitalization and mortality.
Methods
A retrospective cohort of 5,634 COVID-19+ patients with recent Vitamin D labs receiving care at US Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) health care facilities from February 20, 2020 to November 8, 2020, was identified. Vitamin D level was ascertained using the 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 or D2 + D3 test result within 90 days preceding the index positive COVID-19 test. Study outcomes were: (1) inpatient hospitalization requiring isolation and (2) 30-day mortality among those hospitalized. Poisson Generalized Linear Models with robust errors and adjusted for sociodemographics and comorbidities were used to estimate outcome probabilities conditional on the log of Vitamin D levels.
Results
Of 5,634 veterans with a positive COVID-19 test, 707 (12.6%) were female, mean age was 62.5 (SD +/−15.1); 1,920 (34.1%) identified as non-White, and 623 (11.1%) as Latinx. Low vitamin D levels (<20 ng/ml) were found in 794 (14.1%) and 1,162 (20.6%) were hospitalized for COVID-19 infection. After adjusting for all covariates, the probability of hospitalization was 23.7% for those with Vitamin D levels of 15ng/ml, but decreased to 19.8% for patients with higher vitamin D levels of 40 ng/ml, [Adjusted Relative Risk (ARR) = 1.20 (1.06, 1.36, p = .004)]. Among 1,162 hospitalized patients, 186 (16.0%) died within 30 days. The adjusted mortality rate for patients with Vitamin D levels of 15 ng/ml was 22.3% and decreased to 14.4% for patients with higher vitamin D levels of 40 ng/ml, [ARR = 1.55 (1.11,2.18, p = .011)].
Conclusion
Vitamin D level may have a role in predicting COVID-19-related hospitalization and mortality; larger trials are needed to determine if vitamin D supplementation improves COVID-19-related clinical outcomes.
Mortality and Virus studies
- 15.3 X fewer COVID deaths in those getting Vitamin D injections in ICU – RCT July 2024
- COVID and Vitamin D: 2X more likely to die if low, 2X more likely to survive if supplement – umbrella meta-analysis April 2024
- Moderna report: their COVID vax caused "only" 17,751 deaths - April 2024
- COVID infection (without hospitalization) – 1.7X more likely to die in 6 months if low Vitamin D – March 2024
- Vaccines increased your risk of dying of COVID in NZ - official data - Feb 2024
- 3X increase in unspecified causes of Death (Canada 2019-2022) - Dec 2023
- Deaths after vaccination - also reported in Japan - Dec 2023
- Excess deaths after COVID vaccination - 17 countries - Sept 2023
- Excess Deaths in Australia jumped up in 2022– preprint Feb 2023
- Prevent a COVID death: 9 dollars of Vitamin D or 900,000 dollars of vaccine - Aug 2023
- Number needed to vaccinate to prevent 1 Omicron death: 30,000 for age 60-70 - Sept 2022
- COVID survival in Europe in 2020 best predicted by population-level Vitamin D (of 13 variables) – July 2022
- Elderly who had been in COVID ICU were 4X more likely to die if low vitamin D – Nov 2022
- More COVID mortality if less than 20 ng of Vitamin D (Mexico) – May 2022
- 15,000,000 excess deaths in 2 years - May 2022
- COVID death 5.2X more likely if Vitamin D deficient – May 2022
- 29 X more likely to die of COVID if less than 20 ng of Vitamin D - March 2022
- Giving Vitamin D reduced COVID Mortality– Review of 11 studies – March 2022
- 18 million excess global deaths in past 2 years: COVID plus collateral damage - Lancet March 2022
- COVID severity and death more likely if low vitamin D (Egypt this time) - March 2022
- US nursing homes are epicenters for COVID deaths (200,000) - Feb 2022
- Ivermectin taken before COVID decreased death rate by 68 percent (3,000 with Ivermectin vs 3,000 without) - Dec 24, 2021
- Increase in non-COVID deaths (ages 18-64) in Indiana, India, etc. - Jan 5, 2022
- Only 35,000 died in US of COVID who previously had been healthy
- COVID-19 mortality extrapolates to zero at 50 ng of vitamin D – 18th Meta-analysis Sept 2021
- COVID-19 patients getting 300,000 IU of Vitamin D were 5X less likely to die – Sept 2021
- Predict 2X more likely to die of COVID-19 if vitamin D Deficient (Iran 2020) – Sept 2021
- COVID-19 mortality not associated with Vitamin D (everyone had very low levels) -Sept 2021
- COVID-19 mortality for Blacks is 5X that for whites in 2 LA Hospitals - July 2021
- COVID-19 mortality was associated with vitamin D deficiency of 47 countries – July 2021
- Similar death rate for Vaccination and COVID-19 study and video – June 24, 2021
- COVID-19 death in hospital 5X more likely if low vs high vitamin D – preprint June 2021
- COVID-19 deaths 1.7X more likely if low vitamin D (even after “adjusting” for low D health problems) – May 2021
- COVID-19 deaths 1.5X less likely if more than 40 ng of vitamin D – US VA – April 2021
- Vitamin D supplementation and high levels reduce COVID-19 deaths in elderly – Review April 17, 2021
- Less COVID-19 infection, mortality in countries with higher Vitamin D (Asia in this case) – May 2021
- COVID-19 was the third-leading cause of death in the US, especially in those with dark skins - April 1, 2021
- Risk of COVID-19 death was 4.9 X higher if very low vitamin D – March 31, 2021
- COVID-19 mortality 2X higher if low Vitamin D (Mexican hospital, preprint) - March 2021
- All COVID-19 patients had low vitamin D, the lowest were more likely to die – Feb 18, 2021
- 2.7 fewer COVID-19 hospital deaths in those having more than 30 ng of vitamin D – Mayo Jan 9, 2021
- Worse COVID-19 patients got 400,000 IU of vitamin D, deaths cut in half – Jan 14, 2021
- Iranians with COVID-19 were 2.3 X more likely to die if low vitamin D – Jan 2021
- Poor COVID-19 prognosis was 6 X more likely if low vitamin D – Jan 21, 2021
- Less than 10 dollars of Vitamin D per COVID-19 life saved in Myanmar - Jan 2021
- 2.8 X fewer COVID-19 nursing home deaths if add 10,000 IU Vitamin D daily for a week (small observation)- Jan 2021
- Italian nursing home COVID-19 – 4X less likely to die if taking Vitamin D– Dec 22, 2020
- Shift workers 2X more likely to get COVID-19 (low Vitamin D) - Dec 2020
- Those getting high dose vitamin D were 7 X less likely to die of COVID-19 - Dec 11, 2020
- COVID-19 male mortality increased 3.9 X if low vitamin D – observation Nov 25, 2020