Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2010 Oct 6;92(13):2300-4.
doi: 10.2106/JBJS.I.01231.

Hypovitaminosis D in patients scheduled to undergo orthopaedic surgery: a single-center analysis

Ljiljana Bogunovic  1 , Abraham D Kim, Brandon S Beamer, Joseph Nguyen, Joseph M Lane
Affiliations

Hypovitaminosis D in patients scheduled to undergo orthopaedic surgery: a single-center analysis

Ljiljana Bogunovic et al. J Bone Joint Surg Am. .

Abstract

Background: Vitamin D is essential for optimal bone health and muscle function. An alarmingly high rate of vitamin-D deficiency in the general population has been reported recently. The purpose of the present study was to characterize the extent of low serum levels of vitamin D among orthopaedic surgery patients.

Methods: We performed a retrospective chart review of 723 patients who were scheduled for orthopaedic surgery between January 2007 and March 2008. Preoperative serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) levels were measured. The prevalence of normal (≥32 ng/mL), insufficient (<32 ng/mL), and deficient (<20 ng/mL) vitamin-D levels was determined. Logistic regression was used to assess risk factors for insufficient (<32 ng/mL) 25(OH)D levels.

Results: Overall, 43% of all patients had insufficient serum vitamin-D levels, and, of these, 40% had deficient levels. Among the orthopaedic services, the highest rates of low serum vitamin-D levels were seen in the trauma and sports services, in which the rates of abnormal (insufficient and deficient) vitamin-D levels were 66% and 52%, respectively. The lowest rate of abnormal vitamin-D levels was seen in the metabolic bone disease service. Patients between the ages of fifty-one and seventy years were 35% less likely to have low vitamin-D levels than patients between the ages of eighteen and fifty years (p = 0.018). The prevalence of low vitamin-D levels was significantly higher in men (p = 0.006). Individuals with darker skin tones (blacks and Hispanics) were 5.5 times more likely to have low vitamin-D levels when compared with those with lighter skin tones (whites and Asians) (p < 0.001).

Conclusions: The prevalence of low serum levels of vitamin D among patients undergoing orthopaedic surgery is very common. Given the importance of vitamin D in musculoskeletal health, such low levels may negatively impact patient outcomes.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Bar chart depicting the prevalence of 25(OH)D insufficiency and deficiency among the different orthopaedic services.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Holick MF. Vitamin D deficiency. N Engl J Med. 2007;357:266-81 - PubMed
    1. Lips P, Hosking D, Lippuner K, Norquist JM, Wehren L, Maalouf G, Ragi-Eis S, Chandler J. The prevalence of vitamin D inadequacy amongst women with osteoporosis: an international epidemiological investigation. J Intern Med. 2006;260:245-54 - PubMed
    1. Glowacki J, Hurwitz S, Thornhill TS, Kelly M, LeBoff MS. Osteoporosis and vitamin-D deficiency among postmenopausal women with osteoarthritis undergoing total hip arthroplasty. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2003;85:2371-7 - PubMed
    1. Gordon CM, DePeter KC, Feldman HA, Grace E, Emans SJ. Prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among healthy adolescents. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2004;158:531-7 - PubMed
    1. Hill TR, Cotter AA, Mitchell S, Boreham CA, Dubitzky W, Murray L, Strain JJ, Flynn A, Robson PJ, Wallace JM, Kiely M, Cashman KD. Vitamin D status and its determinants in adolescents from the Northern Ireland Young Hearts 2000 cohort. Br J Nutr. 2008;99:1061-7 - PubMed

Publication types