ArticleBMC infectious diseases2021
Vitamin D and COVID-19 severity and related mortality: a prospective study in Italy.
Article in BMC infectious diseases, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT05749770 (Hormonal Contributors to Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 Infection), which is not on this map. Cited by 63 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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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.
Hormonal Contributors to Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 Infection (COV-ENDO)
Who cites it
63 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 104 citations in OpenAlex.
- Effect of vitamin D supplementation on COVID-19 outcomes: an umbrella review of systematic reviews.Frontiers in nutrition · 2025Pooled it
- Hospital and laboratory outcomes of patients with COVID-19 who received vitamin D supplementation: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's archives of pharmacology · 2023Pooled it
- Does vitamin D supplementation reduce COVID-19 severity?: a systematic review.QJM : monthly journal of the Association of Physicians · 2022Pooled it
- Vitamin D Deficiency and Comorbidities as Risk Factors of COVID-19 Infection: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.Journal of preventive medicine and public health = Yebang Uihakhoe chi · 2022Pooled it
- The role of vitamin D deficiency on COVID-19: a systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies.Epidemiology and health · 2021Pooled it
- Vitamin D Status and SARS-CoV-2 Infection and COVID-19 Clinical Outcomes.Frontiers in public health · 2021Pooled it
- Vitamin D Supplementation and Clinical Outcomes in Severe COVID-19 Patients-Randomized Controlled Trial.Nutrients · 2023Trial
- Trial
- Evidence for the Efficacy of a High Dose of Vitamin D on the Hyperinflammation State in Moderate-to-Severe COVID-19 Patients: A Randomized Clinical Trial.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2022Trial
- Efficacy and Safety of Vitamin D Supplementation to Prevent COVID-19 in Frontline Healthcare Workers. A Randomized Clinical Trial.Archives of medical research · 2022Trial
- Association of omega-3 fatty acids (EPA, DHA, DPA) and vitamin D with mortality and morbidity outcomes in COVID-19 patients: the COMED study.Frontiers in nutrition · 2026Article
- Exploring the Association of Vitamin D and VDR Polymorphisms with Disease Severity in COVID-19 and Influenza.Biomedicines · 2025Article
- Associations between pre-infection serum vitamin D concentrations and Omicron COVID-19 incidence, severity and reoccurrence in elderly individuals.Public health nutrition · 2024Article
- The close association of micronutrients with COVID-19.Heliyon · 2024Article
- Vitamin D deficiency and duration of COVID-19 symptoms in UK healthcare workers.Frontiers in medicine · 2024Article
- Article
- Low Vitamin D Levels Are Associated With Long COVID Syndrome in COVID-19 Survivors.The Journal of clinical endocrinology and metabolism · 2023Article
- Article
- Article
- An investigation of the correlation of vitamin D status and management outcomes in patients with severe COVID-19 at a South African tertiary hospital.IJID regions · 2023Article
3 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
21 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundVitamin D deficiency has been suggested to favor a poorer outcome of Coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19). We aimed to assess if 25-hydroxyvitamin-D (25OHD) levels are associated with interleukin 6 (IL-6) levels and with disease severity and mortality in COVID-19.
methodsWe prospectively studied 103 in-patients admitted to a Northern-Italian hospital (age 66.1 ± 14.1 years, 70 males) for severely-symptomatic COVID-19. Fifty-two subjects with SARS-CoV-2 infection but mild COVID-19 symptoms (mildly-symptomatic COVID-19 patients) and 206 subjects without SARS-CoV-2 infection were controls. We measured 25OHD and IL-6 levels at admission and focused on respiratory outcome during hospitalization.
resultsSeverely-symptomatic COVID-19 patients had lower 25OHD levels (18.2 ± 11.4 ng/mL) than mildly-symptomatic COVID-19 patients and non-SARS-CoV-2-infected controls (30.3 ± 8.5 ng/mL and 25.4 ± 9.4 ng/mL, respectively, p < 0.0001 for both comparisons). 25OHD and IL-6 levels were respectively lower and higher in severely-symptomatic COVID-19 patients admitted to intensive care Unit [(ICU), 14.4 ± 8.6 ng/mL and 43.0 (19.0-56.0) pg/mL, respectively], than in those not requiring ICU admission [22.4 ± 1.4 ng/mL, p = 0.0001 and 16.0 (8.0-32.0) pg/mL, p = 0.0002, respectively]. Similar differences were found when comparing COVID-19 patients who died in hospital [13.2 ± 6.4 ng/mL and 45.0 (28.0-99.0) pg/mL] with survivors [19.3 ± 12.0 ng/mL, p = 0.035 and 21.0 (10.5-45.9) pg/mL, p = 0.018, respectively). 25OHD levels inversely correlated with: i) IL-6 levels (ρ - 0.284, p = 0.004); ii) the subsequent need of the ICU admission [relative risk, RR 0.99, 95% confidence interval (95%CI) 0.98-1.00, p = 0.011] regardless of age, gender, presence of at least 1 comorbidity among obesity, diabetes, arterial hypertension, creatinine, IL-6 and lactate dehydrogenase levels, neutrophil cells, lymphocytes and platelets count; iii) mortality (RR 0.97, 95%CI, 0.95-0.99, p = 0.011) regardless of age, gender, presence of diabetes, IL-6 and C-reactive protein and lactate dehydrogenase levels, neutrophil cells, lymphocytes and platelets count.
conclusionIn our COVID-19 patients, low 25OHD levels were inversely correlated with high IL-6 levels and were independent predictors of COVID-19 severity and mortality.
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