Vitamin D level and its determinants among Sudanese Women: Does it matter in a sunshine African Country?

Background: Vitamin D deficiency is a worldwide concern. The aim of the current study was to determine the vitamin D level and its contributing factors in Sudanese women. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 251 Sudanese women attending Family Health Centers in Khartoum, Sudan were interviewed. F...

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Published inJournal of family medicine and primary care Vol. 8; no. 7; pp. 2389 - 2394
Main Authors Husain, Nazik, Badie Suliman, Ahmed, Abdelrahman, Ismail, Bedri, Shahinaz, Musa, Rasha, Osman, Hind, Mustafa, Ayda, Gafer, Nahla, Farah, Ehab, Satir, Ali, Ahmed, Mohamed, Osman, Mugtaba, Khalil, Atif, Agaimy, Abbas
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published India Wolters Kluwer India Pvt. Ltd 01.07.2019
Medknow Publications and Media Pvt. Ltd
Wolters Kluwer - Medknow
Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications
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Summary:Background: Vitamin D deficiency is a worldwide concern. The aim of the current study was to determine the vitamin D level and its contributing factors in Sudanese women. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 251 Sudanese women attending Family Health Centers in Khartoum, Sudan were interviewed. Following the exclusion of confounding factors, samples from 190 women were analzsed. Serum 25 hydroxyvitamin D "25(OH) D" was quantified using competitive electrochemiluminescence immunoassay. Results: Participants' age ranged from 18 to 85 years with a mean age (±SD) of 40.2 (±14.06) years. The mean (±SD) vitamin D level was 13.4 (±6.72) ng/ml, ranged 3.00-36.5 ng/ml and the median was 12.7 ng/mL. In total, 157 out of 190 (82.6%) had vitamin D serum levels below 20 ng/ml (deficient); of whom, 52 (27.4%) were in the age group 21-30 years (P value = 0.228). The correlation between vitamin D level and residence outside Khartoum, sun-exposed face and hands, and face and limbs in comparison with being completely covered were found to be statistically significant (p values 0.008, 0.023, and 0.036). Conclusion: This study displayed a high percentage (82.6%.) of vitamin D deficiency among women in Sudan, and this in part may indicate that sunshine alone cannot guarantee vitamin D sufficiency in the tropics. Family physicians in tropical countries should screen those with clinical presentations related to vitamin D deficiency.
ISSN:2249-4863
2278-7135
DOI:10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_247_19