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
Meta-Analysis
. 2022 Apr 29;14(9):1860.
doi: 10.3390/nu14091860.

Effect of Calcifediol on Physical Performance and Muscle Strength Parameters: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Mario Barbagallo  1 , Nicola Veronese  1 , Agnese Di Prazza  1 , Francesco Pollicino  1 , Luca Carruba  1 , Anna La Carrubba  1 , Ligia J Dominguez  1   2
Affiliations
Meta-Analysis

Effect of Calcifediol on Physical Performance and Muscle Strength Parameters: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Mario Barbagallo et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

There is general agreement that optimal vitamin D status is necessary for bones, muscles, and general health, particularly in older adults, who are at higher risk of negative consequences of vitamin D deficiency, including sarcopenia; vitamin D supplementation is proposed as a potential intervention to mitigate sarcopenia. Several RCTs have reported that calcifediol (25(OH)D) was more potent than cholecalciferol in increasing plasma 25(OH)D. The present systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to summarize the effects of calcifediol on physical performance and muscle strength. We searched databases from inception to 1 January 2022 for studies investigating calcifediol on physical performance or muscle strength parameters. We calculated the difference between the means of follow-up vs. baseline data using standardized mean differences (SMD) and their 95% confidence intervals (CIs); a random-effect model was considered for all of the analyses. Seven RCTs were included in the meta-analysis. Calcifediol significantly improved gait speed (SMD = 2.500; 95%CI = 1.768−3.223; p < 0.0001); handgrip strength (n = 5446 participants, SMD = 0.532; 95%CI: 0.305−0.758; p < 0.0001; I2 = 20.2%); and leg extension (n = 4318 participants, SMD = 0.641; 95%CI: 0.346 to 0.935; p < 0.0001; I2 = 18.8%;) vs. baseline values. In conclusion, in this systematic review and meta-analysis, we observed that calcifediol may have a positive effect on muscle strength parameters, with less evidence on physical performance. These data further indicate the importance of vitamin D and, in particular, of calcifediol, not only on bone metabolism but also on muscle parameters and sarcopenia.

Keywords: calcifediol; meta-analysis; muscle strength; physical performance; sarcopenia; vitamin D.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
PRISMA flow-chart.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Forrest plot of the effect of calcifediol on handgrip strength. References [16,18,19,21].
Figure 3
Figure 3
Forrest plot of the effect of calcifediol on leg extension. References [15,17,18,21].
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Charoenngam N., Holick M.F. Immunologic effects of vitamin D on human health and disease. Nutrients. 2020;12:2097. doi: 10.3390/nu12072097. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Dominguez L.J., Farruggia M., Veronese N., Barbagallo M. Vitamin D sources, metabolism, and deficiency: Available compounds and guidelines for its treatment. Metabolites. 2021;11:255. doi: 10.3390/metabo11040255. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Annweiler C., Schott A.-M., Berrut G., Fantino B., Beauchet O. Vitamin D-related changes in physical performance: A systematic review. J. Nutr. Health Aging. 2009;13:893–898. doi: 10.1007/s12603-009-0248-x. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Visser M., Deeg D.J., Lips P. Low vitamin D and high parathyroid hormone levels as determinants of loss of muscle strength and muscle mass (sarcopenia): The Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 2003;88:5766–5772. doi: 10.1210/jc.2003-030604. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Remelli F., Vitali A., Zurlo A., Volpato S. Vitamin D deficiency and sarcopenia in older persons. Nutrients. 2019;11:2861. doi: 10.3390/nu11122861. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources