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Subject Area

Medical Oncology

Article Type

Original Study

Abstract

Objectives To investigate serum levels of vitamin D in patients with psoriasis compared with healthy controls, and to consider their relation to disease severity. Background Psoriasis is a chronic, recurrent, immune-mediated, inflammatory skin disease. Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that is obtained from food supplements and sun exposure. Vitamin D deficiency has been incriminated in a long panel of diseases including cancers, autoimmune diseases, and cardiovascular and neurological disorders. In psoriasis, vitamin D is involved in the maintenance of cutaneous barrier homeostasis. Several studies have identified an association between polymorphisms of vitamin D receptor and psoriasis susceptibility. Patients and methods This case–control study was conducted on 30 patients with chronic plaque psoriasis and 10 age-matched and sex-matched healthy controls during the period from March 2017 to March 2018. All patients were subjected to full history taking, clinical examination, and laboratory investigations. Serum vitamin D levels were measured by using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay technique. Results There is significant decrease in the level of serum vitamin D in moderate (mean ± SD, 27.57 ± 6.96) and severe (mean ± SD, 19.28 ± 6.35) patient groups compared with the control group (mean ± SD, 40.04 ± 11.12) whereas nonsignificant difference existed with the mild group (mean ± SD, 33.28 ± 5.34). There is significant negative correlation between serum vitamin D and each of age (r = −0.418, P = 0.022), disease duration (r = −0.572, P = 0.001), and psoriasis area and severity index score (r = −0.680, P < 0.001). Conclusion Decreased 25 OH vitamin D serum level was found in psoriatic patients. The 25 OH vitamin D serum level may be used as a marker of psoriasis severity and response to treatment.

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