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Review
. 2018 Oct 29;22(1):276.
doi: 10.1186/s13054-018-2185-8.

Vitamin D deficiency and supplementation in critical illness-the known knowns and known unknowns

Priya Nair  1   2   3   4   5 , Balasubramaniam Venkatesh  6   7   8   9 , Jacqueline R Center  10   11   12
Affiliations
Review

Vitamin D deficiency and supplementation in critical illness-the known knowns and known unknowns

Priya Nair et al. Crit Care. .

Abstract

The burgeoning literature on vitamin D deficiency and supplementation over the past decade or so has generated a greater understanding of some areas but also an appreciation of the many areas of equipoise. This is particularly relevant in the field of critical care with the heterogeneous patient populations, the severity and duration of illness and the frequency of comorbid conditions.This review aims to summarise the current knowledge base of vitamin D deficiency within the context of critical illness-"the known knowns"-and also highlight the areas of recognised uncertainty-"the known unknowns". It acknowledges the fact that there may well be other knowledge gaps of clinical relevance of which we are currently unaware-"the unknown unknowns".

Keywords: Cholecalciferol; Pleiotropic effects; Supplementation; Vitamin D; Vitamin D binding protein.

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The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Synthesis, metabolism and functions of vitamin D. PTH parathyroid hormone, FGF-23 fibroblast growth factor-23, RANKL receptor activator of nuclear kappa-B ligand
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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