Use of Vitamin D Supplements in Osteoarthritis: An Observational Study in a Tertiary Health Care Facility

Objective: The purpose of the study was to assess impact of vitamin D supplements on the disease progression and overall health of osteoarthritis (OA) patients. Methodology: A cohort study was carried out for 8 months (August 2017–March 2018) in the Orthopedics Department of Kasturba Hospital, Manipal, India, a tertiary care hospital. One hundred and forty-two patients who were diagnosed with OA (grades 1–3) with low serum 25(OH)D levels (severely deficient, deficient, or insufficient) were selected for the study. These patients were categorized into two cohorts: a control cohort (CC) and a study cohort (SC). CC members were patients (n = 71) who had not received vitamin D supplements, and SC members were patients (n = 71) who had received vitamin D supplements. Severity grading of OA, pain score, and health assessment were performed using the Kellgren–Laurence grading score, visual analogue scale (VAS), and WOMAC, respectively, at baseline and after 3 months of follow-up. Results: Subjects in the both CC and SC reported no statistically significant difference (similar in both group) in severity grade (p = 0.303), pain score (p = 0.099), parathyroid hormone (PTH) (p = 0.083), and health status (p = 0.76) at baseline. After 3 months of follow-up (post vitamin D supplementation), OA patients have shown statistically significant difference in severity grades, serum 25(OH)D status, PTH level (p < 0.001), and overall health status (p = 0.001) in the SC with respect to baseline. Likewise, percentage distribution of positive changes was significantly higher in severity grade, pain score, serum 25(OH)D level, overall health status (p < 0.001), and PTH (p = 0.040) of SC as compared to CC at follow-up. Conclusion: Vitamin D supplements have significantly improved serum 25(OH)D levels, PTH, severity grade, and pain score of OA patients. Most importantly, vitamin D supplements have shown improvement in the overall health of OA patients, emphasizing the place of vitamin D supplements in the management of OA. Clinical Trial Registry-India (CTRI) registration no: CTRI/2017/12/011031.