Association Between Vitamin D Deficiency and Duration of Hospital Stay, Pediatric Intensive Care Unit Stay, and Ventilation; Pediatric Risk of Mortality Score; and Rate of Readmission: A Prospective Observational Study.

Introduction The study aims to evaluate the association between a deficiency of Vitamin D level with the duration of hospital stay, pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) stay, and ventilation; the pediatric risk of mortality (PRISM) score, and the rate of readmission. Materials and methods This prospective observational study was conducted from November 2014 to October 2015, and the study population consisted of children admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) in a tertiary care hospital of Puducherry. After measuring vitamin D levels, children were allotted into three categories depending on their serum 25(OH)D levels as the sufficient group (25[OH]D level ≥ 30 ng/mL), insufficient group (25[OH]D level = 20 - 29.9 ng/mL), and deficient group (25[OH]D level < 20 ng/mL). Among these three groups, the duration of hospital stay, PICU stay, and ventilation; the PRISM score, and the rate of readmission were compared. Results A total of 522 patients were included in the study. Based on their 25(OH)D level, 222 patients (42.5%) were in the sufficient category, 153 patients (29.3%) were in the deficient category, and 147 patients (28.2%) were in the insufficient category. Vitamin D deficiency state is not statistically significantly associated with the duration of hospital stay (P = .84), duration of PICU stay (P = .69), duration of ventilation (P = .48), PRISM score (P = .63), and rate of readmission (P = .91). Conclusions Longer hospital stay, prolonged PICU stay, longer duration of ventilation, and higher PRISM III score were independent risk factors for higher mortality in the PICU. However, lower vitamin D levels are not statistically significant to predict mortality among the study population.

Vitamin D Status at Admission and Its Association With Mortality in Children Admitted to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit.

Introduction This study aims to evaluate the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and the correlation between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) and mortality. Materials and methods A prospective observational study was conducted among 522 children admitted to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit in the Pediatrics Department of the Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, Pondicherry, India. After measuring vitamin D levels, children were assigned into three groups based on their serum 25(OH)D levels: a sufficient group (25(OH)D level ≥ 30 ng/mL), an insufficient group (25(OH)D level = 20-29.9 ng/mL), and a deficient group (25(OH)D level < 20 ng/mL). Each group was again divided into two sub-groups (survivors and non-survivors if death was the outcome), and then each sub-group was again divided into two groups (sepsis and all non-septic causes). Results were evaluated for an association with mortality. Results A majority (66.6%) of patients who died had low levels of 25(OH)D (deficient = 37.9%; insufficient = 28.7%). Mortality was higher in children with 25(OH)D deficiency (P = 0.03). In univariate analysis, 25(OH)D deficiency was strongly associated with sepsis in children according to our observation, with 51% from the deficient group, 38% from the insufficient group, and 27.5% from the sufficient group (P ≤ 0.01). Mortality is not associated with 25(OH)D deficiency or insufficiency in multilogistic regression analysis. A serum vitamin D level of 20 ng/mL can predict higher mortality, with a specificity of 62.1%. Conclusions Vitamin D supplementation may be recommended for PICU-admitted cases to decrease the risk of sepsis. This association can be explored more in the future among the community population for further recommendations.