Vitamin D levels and mortality with SARS-COV-2 infection: a retrospective two-centre cohort study

Abstract

Background The role of vitamin D in increased mortality with SARS-COV-2 virus, namely, COVID-19, remains uncertain. We analysed all the patients who were treated as COVID-19-positive with or without a positive swab and were tested for vitamin D levels. Methods This was a retrospective, study involving 1226 patients swabbed for SARS-CoV-2 between the 10 February 2020 and 1 May 2020 at two hospitals of East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust. Patients who were swab-positive for COVID-19 or treated as COVID-19-positive on clinical grounds even though swab results were negative were included in this study. We analysed the association of vitamin D levels and mortality, assessing linear and non-linear associations. Results A total of 1226 patients had SARS-CoV-2 RNA swabs in this period with age range from 1 year to 101 years. A cohort of 433 of these patients had swabs and recent vitamin D levels anytime in the previous 3 months. Mortality rates were not found to be associated with vitamin D levels (OR=1.04, 95% CI 0.96 to 1.12). Conclusion Our findings suggest similar mortality risk from COVID-19 irrespective of the levels of vitamin D. Larger prospective studies will be needed to confirm these findings.