Vitamin D Levels Associated With Endometriosis Risk

The levels of vitamin D are inversely correlated with the risk of endometriosis, study finds.

Key Points

Highlights: 

• There is a negative correlation between serum levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 and the risk of endometriosis.

Importance:

• Although no causal link has been established, this finding suggests that maintaining sufficient levels of vitamin D may be protective against endometriosis.

What’s done here:

• Researchers analyzed data from 3232 American women.

Key results:

• There was a negative correlation between the serum levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 and the risk of endometriosis.
• The odds ratio was 0.73 with a 95% confidence interval of 0.54-0.97 in the adequate vitamin D level group compared to the insufficient vitamin D level group. 

Limitations:

• This is a descriptive study that shows no cause and effect. 
• The levels of vitamin D in the serum were measured only once.
• Other factors such as measurement errors may influence the results.

Lay Summary

Endometriosis is inversely correlated with the levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 in the serum, according to a new study published in the scientific journal PLoS One. However, more research is necessary to establish a causal link between the disease and vitamin D3 levels and understand whether maintaining sufficient vitamin D levels could help prevent endometriosis.

There is currently no consensus on the association between vitamin D and endometriosis.

In the present study, a team of researchers from China led by Dr. Aiping Qin analyzed data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey to understand the Association between serum vitamin D levels and endometriosis. The team analyzed a total of 3232 women, ages 20 to 54. 

Statistical analysis revealed a negative correlation between the levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 (25(OH)D), also known as cholecalciferol in the serum, and the risk of endometriosis. 

“We found that higher serum 25(OH)D concentrations were associated with a decreased incidence of endometriosis in a representative sample of American women with endometriosis,” the researchers wrote. “These results lend credence to the possible advantages of maintaining sufficient vitamin D levels to prevent endometriosis”.

Endometriosis is a disease associated with inflammation, the cause of which is not fully understood. 

Vitamin D is an essential vitamin that has anti-inflammatory, antiproliferative, and anti-oxidative properties.

Research Source: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38215179/