SynthesisJournal of the American Geriatrics Society2010
Vitamin D treatment for the prevention of falls in older adults: systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 2010. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 82 papers, 12 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
82 citing papers in PubMed, 12 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Exercise and nutritional interventions for sarcopenia-related fall prevention in older adults: An umbrella review.The journal of nutrition, health & aging · 2026Pooled it
- Calcium, vitamin D, or combined supplementation to prevent fractures and falls: systematic review and meta-analysis.BMJ (Clinical research ed.) · 2026Pooled it
- Effectiveness of fall prevention interventions in residential aged care and community settings: an umbrella review.BMC geriatrics · 2024Pooled it
- Effectiveness of Vitamin D Supplements in Reducing the Risk of Falls among Older Adults: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.Annals of geriatric medicine and research · 2023Pooled it
- Design Features of Randomized Clinical Trials of Vitamin D and Falls: A Systematic Review.Nutrients · 2018Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Effect of Stains on LDL Reduction and Liver Safety: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.BioMed research international · 2018Pooled it
- The serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels and hip fracture risk: a meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies.Oncotarget · 2017Pooled it
- Vitamin D supplementation and its influence on muscle strength and mobility in community-dwelling older persons: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Journal of human nutrition and dietetics : the official journal of the British Dietetic Association · 2017Pooled it
- Vitamin D and vitamin D analogues for preventing fractures in post-menopausal women and older men.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2014Pooled it
- Vitamin D and multiple health outcomes: umbrella review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses of observational studies and randomised trials.BMJ (Clinical research ed.) · 2014Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Vitamin DJournal of cachexia, sarcopenia and muscle · 2021Trial
- The Effects of Four Doses of Vitamin D Supplements on Falls in Older Adults : A Response-Adaptive, Randomized Clinical Trial.Annals of internal medicine · 2021Trial
- High-dose versus low-dose ergocalciferol for correcting hypovitaminosis D after fragility hip fracture: a randomized controlled trial.BMC geriatrics · 2021Trial
- VITamin D and OmegA-3 TriaL (VITAL): Effects of Vitamin D Supplements on Risk of Falls in the US Population.The Journal of clinical endocrinology and metabolism · 2020Trial
- Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels and incident falls in older women.Osteoporosis international : a journal established as result of cooperation between the European Foundation for Osteoporosis and the National Osteoporosis Foundation of the USA · 2019Trial
- The effects of single high-dose or daily low-dosage oral colecalciferol treatment on vitamin D levels and muscle strength in postmenopausal women.BMC endocrine disorders · 2018Trial
- Nutrient Intake During Diet-Induced Weight Loss and Exercise Interventions in a Randomized Trial in Older Overweight and Obese Adults.The journal of nutrition, health & aging · 2017Trial
- Delivery of a Vitamin D Intervention in Homebound Older Adults Using a Meals-on-Wheels Program: A Pilot Study.Journal of the American Geriatrics Society · 2015Trial
22 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
Abstract
objectivesTo systematically review and quantitatively synthesize the effect of vitamin D therapy on fall prevention in older adults.
designSystematic review and meta-analysis.
settingMEDLINE, CINAHL, Web of Science, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, LILACS, bibliographies of selected articles, and previous systematic reviews through February 2009 were searched for eligible studies.
participantsOlder adults (aged > or = 60) who participated in randomized controlled trials that both investigated the effectiveness of vitamin D therapy in the prevention of falls and used an explicit fall definition. MEASUREMENTS: Two authors independently extracted data, including study characteristics, quality assessment, and outcomes. The I(2) statistic was used to assess heterogeneity in a random-effects model.
resultsOf 1,679 potentially relevant articles, 10 met inclusion criteria. In pooled analysis, vitamin D therapy (200-1,000 IU) resulted in 14% (relative risk (RR)=0.86, 95% confidence interval (CI)=0.79-0.93; I(2)=7%) fewer falls than calcium or placebo (number needed to treat =15). The following subgroups had significantly fewer falls: community-dwelling (aged <80), adjunctive calcium supplementation, no history of fractures or falls, duration longer than 6 months, cholecalciferol, and dose of 800 IU or greater. Meta-regression demonstrated no linear association between vitamin D dose or duration and treatment effect. Post hoc analysis including seven additional studies (17 total) without explicit fall definitions yielded smaller benefit (RR=0.92, 95% CI=0.87-0.98) and more heterogeneity (I(2)=36%) but found significant intergroup differences favoring adjunctive calcium over none (P=.001).
conclusionVitamin D treatment effectively reduces the risk of falls in older adults. Future studies should investigate whether particular populations or treatment regimens may have greater benefit.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.