Vitamin D and systemic lupus erythematosus

Abstract

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disorder which has been linked to multifactorial aspects such as genetic susceptibility infection and environmental factor. Vitamin D deficiency is one of the compelling factors that are currently gaining attention. This review summarizes the effect of hypovitaminosis D on SLE development and recommendations for vitamin D supplements in SLE. Existing data indicates high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among lupus patients. A number of studies show that hypovitaminosis D may contribute to lupus pathogenesis and higher disease activity. Although no available consensus exists regarding vitamin D status and treatment for immunological purposes in SLE, the recent studies show that vitamin D supplementation tends to improve disease severity of SLE patients without any serious side effects reported. Consequently, vitamin D treatment can be given in lupus patients based on the individual profile of each patient and updated current evidence-based data.