Prevalence of hypovitaminosis D among ENT patients in Nigeria : a multi-center, multi-regional study

Abstract EN

Objective : vitamin D are fat-soluble hormones with various biological effects in the body.

exposure to sunlight remains the primary determinant of vitamin D status in humans.

despite abundant sunshine in northern Nigeria, high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency has been reported.

hence, this study aimed to determine the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among patients attending ENT clinics in Nigeria.

patients and methods : a multi-centre, case-control study carried out among ENT patients attending selected tertiary hospitals in northern Nigeria and healthy controls.

the study locations and participants were selected using a multi-stage sampling technique.

consecutive consenting patients attending ENT clinics responded to interviewer-administered questionnaires.

serum vitamin D was determined using Cal biotech 25 (OH) vitamin D Elisa kit.

results : age range of the 198 participants was 2-70 years.

Median ages was 31.0 and 31.5 years for subjects and controls respectively.

modal age group was 31-40 years.

There were 62.1% female participants with male to female ratio of 1 : 1.6.

prevalence of hypovitaminosis D was higher among subjects than controls.

(p = 0.034) More females had deficient (87.5% ) and insufficient (73.1% ) levels of vitamin D compared with their male counterparts (12.5% ) and (26.9% ) respectively.

(p = 0.009) subjects with dark skin color had lower mean vitamin D level (34.8 versus 39.8 nmol / L).

(p = 0.006).

conclusion : patients attending general otorhinolaryngology clinics in northern Nigeria had low vitamin D levels and its supplementation may go a long way in optimizing their primary condition.

female gender and dark skin color were important factors that contribute to low vitamin D level.

vitamin D supplements may be useful as prophylactics and adjunct treatment for common otorhinolaryngological conditions.