Table 1. Summary of observational studies of vitamin D status in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).
| Study Design | Study Population | Vitamin D Assessments | Disease-related Assessments | Comments | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Case series |
12 adolescent SLE patients |
1,25(OH)2D3 |
Avascular necrosis (AVN) of bone |
No association with AVN but 7 of 12 had low 1,25(OH)2D3 and 9 had osteopenia |
46 |
| Cross-sectional case-control |
25 SLE patients 25 fibromyalgia controls |
PTH, 25(OH)D, 1,25(OH)2D3 |
Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), prednisone, and azathioprine use |
No difference between groups in 25(OH)D, but lower 1,25(OH)2D3 with HCQ use |
47 |
| Cross-sectional case-control |
21 SLE patients 29 RA patients 12 OA patients 72 controls |
25(OH)D, 1,25(OH)2D3, DBP phenotype |
Anti-dsDNA, ESR, CBC, LACC score |
Lower 25(OH)D in SLE compared with OA and controls |
48 |
| Cross-sectional case-control |
123 SLE patients 240 age and sex-matched population controls |
25(OH)D |
ACR criteria |
Lower 25(OH)D in SLE compared with controls, associated with renal disease and photosensitivity |
21 |
| Cross-sectional case-control |
57–112 SLE patients 29 RA patients 28 controls |
25(OH)D 1,25(OH)2D3 |
ANA, SLEDAI score |
Lower 25(OH)D and 1,25(OH)2D3 in SLE compared with controls and RA, inverse association of 1,25(OH)2D3 with disease activity and ANA |
49 |
| Cross-sectional case-control |
101 SLE patients 86 controls |
25(OH)D |
SLEDAI score |
25(OH)D < 30ng/ml in 95%, inverse association with disease activity |
50 |
| Cross-sectional case-control |
46 SLE patients 35 controls |
25(OH)D |
ANA, anti-dsDNA, Hb, ESR, ECLAM and SLEDAI scores |
Inverse association of 25(OH)D with disease activity |
51 |
| Cross-sectional case-control |
38 pediatric SLE patients 207 controls |
25(OH)D 1,25(OH)2D |
SLEDAI score |
Inverse association of 25(OH)D with disease activity and with BMI, and more severe deficiency in cases compared with controls |
52 |
| Cross-sectional case-control |
32 SLE women, 32 age race and sex-matched controls |
25(OH)D |
ANA, IFNα activity and SLEDAI |
More 25(OH)D deficiency in cases compared with controls, and inverse association between 25(OH)D and ANA positivity among controls and IFN-α activity among cases |
16 |
| Cross-sectional case-control |
104 SLE women, 49 controls |
25(OH)D |
Anti-dsDNA, SLEDAI score |
25(OH)D significantly lower in cases compared with controls, but no association with disease activity among cases |
53 |
| Cross-sectional case-control |
60 SLE patients, 60 matched controls |
25(OH)D |
SLEDAI score |
25(OH)D significantly lower in cases compared with controls, and inverse association between 25(OH)D and disease activity among cases |
54 |
| Cross-sectional cohort |
165 SLE patients |
25(OH)D |
SLEDAI score |
Inverse association with disease activity |
55 |
| Cross-sectional cohort |
138 SLE patients |
25(OH)D |
ECLAM score |
No association with disease activity |
56 |
| Cross-sectional cohort |
25 SLE patients 12 incomplete lupus patients |
25(OH)D |
ANA, anti-dsDNA, autoantigen array, mHAQ, VAS global, VAS fatigue |
65% deficient, associated with poorer functional status |
57 |
| Cross-Sectional cohort |
36 SLE patients |
25(OH)D |
SLEDAI score |
Inverse association with disease activity |
58 |
| Cross-Sectional cohort |
378 SLE patients |
25(OH)D |
SLEDAI score, ECLAM score |
Inverse association with disease activity |
59 |
| Cross- Sectional cohort |
198 SLE patients |
25(OH)D |
SLEDAI score |
Inverse association with disease activity |
15 |
| Cross- Sectional cohort |
177 SLE patients |
25(OH)D |
SLEDAI score, anti-Sm antibody levels, C4 levels |
Inverse association with disease activity, anti-Sm and C4 levels |
60 |
| Cross- Sectional cohort |
37 SLE patients, ages 5–21 y |
25(OH)D, Urinary DBP/creatinine ratio |
SLEDAI score, PGA |
Low 25(OH)D associated with proteinuria and urinary DBP but not disease activity when proteinuria patients excluded |
61 |
| Cross-Sectional cohort |
40 SLE patients |
25(OH)D |
BILAG score, anti-dsDNA |
Inverse association with disease activity and anti-dsDNA antibodies |
62 |
| Prospective cohort |
186,389 women from 1980–2002 |
Dietary intake questionnaire |
190 incident cases of SLE |
No association found with vitamin D intake |
63 |
| Prospective cohort |
124 SLE women |
25(OH)D |
SLEDAI and SDI scores |
No association found |
64 |
| Prospective cohort |
75 SLE women |
25(OH)D |
SLEDAI score |
Inverse association with disease activity |
33 |
| Prospective cohort | 80 SLE patients | 25(OH)D | VAS fatigue, SLEDAI and SDI scores | Inverse association with fatigue, but no association with SLEDAI or SDI | 65 |