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. 2017 Aug 10;10(1):385.
doi: 10.1186/s13104-017-2721-7.

Prevalence of vitamin D supplement use in Australian residential aged care facilities in November 2014

Pippy Walker  1 , Amanda Miller Amberber  2 , Susan Kurrle  3 , Annette Kifley  2 , Ian D Cameron  2
Affiliations

Prevalence of vitamin D supplement use in Australian residential aged care facilities in November 2014

Pippy Walker et al. BMC Res Notes. .

Abstract

Objective: We sought to establish the prevalence and predictors of adequate vitamin D supplement use, as per current falls prevention guidelines in Australian aged care homes. De-identified medication chart data from November 2014 were collected from pharmacists. The proportion of residents prescribed vitamin D and associations between adequate vitamin D supplementation and state, calcium use and osteoporosis medication use were assessed.

Results: The prevalence of adequate vitamin D supplement use (≥800 IU) was 47.1% of residents (95% CI 41.4, 52.8%). There was no significant difference between states (p = 0.3), however there was large variation between individual facilities (15.9-85.0%). Residents were more likely to be prescribed an adequate dose of vitamin D if they were prescribed a calcium supplement (p = 0.0001) or an osteoporosis medication (p = 0.03).

Keywords: Falls; Frail older adults; Preventive medicine; Residential facilities; Vitamin D.

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