correlation between serum Vitamin D3 Level and Disease Severity in the Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) which is characterized by symptoms such as dyspnea and cough is the fourth leading cause of death worldwide. Limited studies have shown that vitamin D3 can have a positive impact on reducing the disease severity and preventing exacerbations in the patients with COPD. Therefore, in this study we evaluated the correlation of the serum vitamin D3 level with the severity of disease in COPD patients referring to the clinic of Ali-Ibn Abi Talib Hospital in Rafsanjan in 2015-2016.

This descriptive-correlational study included 70 patients with COPD. Diagnosis of COPD was confirmed by spirometry. In all patients, serum vitamin D3 level was measured then variables such as the severity of the disease (from spirometry score in GOLD criteria), the severity of dyspnea according to MRC dyspnea scale and the number of exacerbations were measured. Using software SPSS 20, data were analyzed by Spearman correlation.

Among 70 COPD patients, 17 (24.2%) had severe vitamin D3 deficiency and 21 (30%) had insufficient vitamin D3 level. Significant moderate correlation was observed between the serum vitamin D3 level and severity of the disease based on the results of spirometry (r=0.587 and p=0.000). Also, vitamin D3 level showed significant inverse relationships with the frequency of exacerbations (p = 0.000) and the severity of dyspnea (p = 0.05).

The study findings indicated that vitamin D3 deficiency among COPD patients was prevalent. Moreover, there was a clear association between vitamin D3 deficiency and the severity of COPD. Therefore, treatment of vitamin D3 deficiency can potentially prevent the severity and frequency of exacerbations in these patients.