Trial reportBrain and behavior2020
Vitamin D supplementation improves anxiety but not depression symptoms in patients with vitamin D deficiency.
Trial report in Brain and behavior, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 46 papers, 9 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
46 citing papers in PubMed, 9 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 81 citations in OpenAlex.
- FIGO best practice recommendations for the mental health of women at menopausal age.International journal of gynaecology and obstetrics: the official organ of the International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics · 2026Guideline
- Efficacy of vitamin D supplementation in patients diagnosed with depression: a dose-response meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Frontiers in nutrition · 2026Pooled it
- Understanding the research landscape of over-the-counter herbal products, dietary supplements, and medications evaluated for depressive symptoms in adults: a scoping review.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2025Pooled it
- Nutraceuticals in Psychiatric Disorders: A Systematic Review.International journal of molecular sciences · 2024Pooled it
- Severe Vitamin D Deficiency-A Possible Cause of Resistance to Treatment in Psychiatric Pathology.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2023Pooled it
- Effect of Vitamin D Supplementation on Depression in Adults: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs).Nutrients · 2023Pooled it
- Association of a low vitamin D status with risk of post-stroke depression: A meta-analysis and systematic review.Frontiers in nutrition · 2023Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Vitamin D Supplementation and Sleep: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Intervention Studies.Nutrients · 2022Pooled it
- Vitamin D supplementation improves anxiety but not depression symptoms in patients with vitamin D deficiency.Brain and behavior · 2020Trial
- The Association Between Vitamin D Status and Depression Severity in Adults with Major Depressive Disorder: A Cross-Sectional Study.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- Neurobiological Mechanisms of Vitamin D in Anxiety: Evidence from Rodent Models and Bioinformatics-Based Target Identification.Nutrients · 2026Review
- Vitamin D deficiency and depression in obese adults: NHANES 2009-2018.Irish journal of medical science · 2026Article
- The relationship between smoking cessation and vitamin D.Irish journal of medical science · 2026Article
- Association of vitamin D with depression and anxiety in polycystic ovary syndrome in Saudi Arabia.Journal of family medicine and primary care · 2025Article
- Plasma Proteomic Profiling of a Group of Anxious Dogs by LC-MS/MS: A Case-Control Study.Proteomics. Clinical applications · 2025Article
- Article
- Unlocking the Potential of Vitamin D: A Comprehensive Exploration of Its Role in Neurological Health and Diseases.Biology · 2025Review
- Can Vıtamın D Reduce the Need for SSRI by Modulatıng Serotonın Synthesıs?: A Revıew of Recent Lıterature.Current nutrition reports · 2025Review
- Transcranial magnetic stimulation combined with virtual reality improves quality of life in patients with Parkinson's disease with depression.Frontiers in neurology · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveEpidemiological evidence indicated a relationship between vitamin D (VD) and depression with anxiety, but their therapeutic relationship has not been fully elucidated. This study aimed to examine whether VD supplementation would relieve symptoms in patients with depression and anxiety with low serum 25-hydroxy VD [25(OH) D] levels.
methodParticipants with low 25(OH)D levels were randomized to control or daily VD group and were followed up for 6 months. Serum concentrations of 25(OH) D were measured using commercial kits. Psychological symptoms were evaluated with the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale-17 (HAMD-17), Revised Social Anhedonia Scale (RSAS), Revised Physical Anhedonia scale (RPAS), and Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale-14 (HAMA-14). The trial was listed in the trial registration (http://www.medresman.org.cn/uc/index.aspx; NTR number: ChiCTR2000030130).
resultsIn this clinical population, no significant difference in depression symptoms was detected between VD group and control group at both baseline and at the endpoint of our study. The HAMD-17, RSAS, and RPAS scores did not change significantly between VD and control groups from baseline to endpoint (all p > .05). However, there was a significant difference in time effect of the total HAMA-14 scores between the two groups (β [95% Cl] = -2.235 [-3.818, -0.653], p = .006).
conclusionsVitamin D supplementation could improve the anxiety symptoms but not depressive symptoms in depressive patients with low VD level after the 6-month intervention.
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What OpenQuestion holds
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.