Vitamin D supplementation in a nursing home population

✍ Scribed by Gerry K. Schwalfenberg; Stephen J. Genuis

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2010
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 90 KB
• Volume: 54
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1613-4125
• DOI: 10.1002/mnfr.200900601

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

To determine if daily supplementation of 2000 IU of vitamin D~3~ is able to normalize the 25(OH)D~3~ status in a nursing home population, a group particularly prone to Vitamin D insufficiency. A chart review was performed to retrospectively determine the 25(OH)D~3~ level in each nursing home patient (N=68) who had received a minimum of 5 months of daily 2000 IU vitamin D~3~ supplementation. 94.1% of nursing home residents had a 25(OH)D~3~ level in excess of 80 nmol/L after a minimum of 5 months of daily 2,000 IU vitamin D~3~ supplementation. No residents had 25(OH)D~3~ levels in a toxic range. In order to improve health and well‐being and to preclude preventable morbidity and mortality associated with 25(OH)D~3~ insufficiency, all nursing home patients without contraindication should be routinely supplemented with (at minimum) 2000 IU of vitamin D~3~ on a daily basis.