Fat-soluble-vitamin status during the first year of life in infants with cystic fibrosis identified by screening of newborns

Abstract

We investigated the fat-soluble-vitamin status during the first year of life in 36 infants with cystic fibrosis (CF) consecutively identified by screening of newborns. At initial evaluation (at age 51.0 +/- 26.7 d) 36% of patients were hypoalbuminemic, 21% had low serum retinol, 35% had low serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D. 38% had low serum alpha-tocopherol and low ratios of serum vitamin E to total lipids, and none had elevated protein in vitamin K absence (PIVKA). Hypoalbuminemia was more common in breast-fed than in formula-fed infants. Seventy-two-hour fecal fat excretion correlated inversely with serum alpha-tocopherol. Treatment with oral pancreatic enzyme supplements, a multiple vitamin, and additional vitamin E was associated with normalization of serum albumin, retinol, and 25-hydroxyvitamin D and negative PIVKA at age 6 and 12 mo. Approximately 10% of patients remained vitamin E deficient. Biochemical evidence of fat-soluble-vitamin deficiencies is common before age 3 mo in patients with CF and, except for vitamin E, these deficiencies corrected with standard therapy.