Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35882673›Full record

SynthesisEuropean journal of nutrition2022

Prevalence and novel risk factors for vitamin D insufficiency in elite athletes: systematic review and meta-analysis.

Tilda Harju, Blair Gray, Alexandra Mavroedi, Abdulaziz Farooq, John Joseph Reilly

Erratum issuedOpen access · hybridAbstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
In one paragraph

Synthesis in European journal of nutrition, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 22 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
22citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
4.5field-weighted citation impact, top 4% of its field
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

22 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 35 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
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  9. Regulatory role of vitamin DScientific reports · 2025
    Article
  10. FokI Polymorphism of theNutrients · 2025
    Article
  11. Article
  12. Vitamin D status and its determinants in German elite athletes.European journal of applied physiology · 2025
    Article
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  15. Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.

Tilda HarjuUniversity of Strathclyde School of Psychological Sciences & Health, Glasgow, Scotland.
Blair GrayUniversity of Strathclyde School of Psychological Sciences & Health, Glasgow, Scotland.
Alexandra MavroediUniversity of Strathclyde School of Psychological Sciences & Health, Glasgow, Scotland.
Abdulaziz FarooqFIFA Medical Centre of Excellence, Aspetar, Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital, Doha, Qatar.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9162-4948
John Joseph ReillyUniversity of Strathclyde School of Psychological Sciences & Health, Glasgow, Scotland. john.j.reilly@strath.ac.uk.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6165-5471
University of Strathclyde · GBQatar Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital · QA

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

background and purposeVitamin D insufficiency may be common among elite athletes, but prevalence is unclear, and some potentially important risk factors are uncertain. The present study aimed to (a) estimate the prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency in elite athletes, and (b) examine differences in prevalence between the sexes, and between adults and adolescents, from recent studies which used a contemporary definition of insufficiency.

methodsFour databases (Web of Science, SPORTDiscus, PubMed, and Sports Medicine and Education Index) were searched for studies in elite athletes. Literature selection, data extraction, and risk of bias assessment were conducted independently by two researchers. Vitamin D insufficiency was defined as 25(OH)D < 50 nmol/L. Meta-analysis was conducted, using R software x64 4.0.2, to provide estimates of prevalence of insufficiency for adults and adolescents, and to examine between-sex differences in risk of insufficiency.

resultsFrom the initial 943 literature search hits, 51 studies were eligible with 5456 participants, 33 studies in adults (12/33 in winter and spring), 15 studies in adolescents (6/15 in winter and spring) and 3 studies with age of study participants not given. Prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency from meta-analysis was 30% (95% CI 22-39%) in adults and prevalence was higher, though not significantly so, at 39% (95% CI 25-55%) in adolescents. Differences in the prevalence of insufficiency between the sexes for the eight studies which provided within-study comparisons was not significant (RR = 1.0; 95% CI 0.79-1.26). Evidence quality was moderate.

conclusionsPrevalence of vitamin D insufficiency (≤ 50 nmol/L) in elite athletes is high, suggesting a need for greater attention to prevention and treatment. Prevalence estimates in the present study are conservative due to a relative lack of studies in winter. While there was no evidence of higher risk among women than men in the present study, there was less evidence on women.

Indexed as

Vitamin DVitamin D DeficiencyAdolescentAdultAthletesFemaleHumansMalePrevalenceRisk FactorsVitaminsVitamin DVitaminsNutritionNutritional statusSportVitamin D

Identifiers

PMID35882673
PMCPMC9596536
OpenAlexW4288081405

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.