Vitamin D deficiency and MS

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More Evidence Links Vitamin D Deficiency to MS

By Pauline Anderson

Results of a large new study reinforce the view that vitamin D deficiency may be a risk factor for multiple sclerosis (MS).

The study, which compared vitamin D levels in blood donated by pregnant women without MS, showed a twofold increase in MS risk among those considered vitamin D deficient compared with those who had adequate levels.

While numerous previous studies have shown similar findings, this was the largest longitudinal investigation yet to directly assess whether vitamin D levels in healthy individuals predict their risk for MS.

"Previous studies had fewer than 20 MS cases, and here we had over 1000 women with MS, so it was a very large study," lead author, Kassandra L, Munger, ScD, research scientist, Department of Nutrition, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, told Medscape Medical News.

The study was published online September 13 in Neurology.

Dr Munger and her colleagues used the Finnish Maternity Cohort, which comprises over 800,000 women who have provided a blood sample for routine prenatal testing, typically between 10 and 14 weeks' gestation. There are over 1.8 million stored serum samples, covering over 95% of pregnancies in Finland since 1983.

In 2004, Finland formally recommended that pregnant women take vitamin D supplements.

Using linked national databases, researchers identified women with a sample who were subsequently diagnosed with MS. On average, serum samples were collected 9.3 years before the MS diagnosis.

The analysis included 6200 serum samples from 1092 cases as well as 2123 age- and residence-matched controls.

 Medscape

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