Vitamin D deficiency predicts severe acute pancreatitis

Background The ability to predict the severity of disease is important to reduce morbidity and mortality in patients with acute pancreatitis (AP). Vitamin D deficiency has been associated with severity in various diseases. Objective This study was conducted to assess vitamin D as a predictor of disease severity in patients with AP. Methods Patients with AP were prospectively enrolled at Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine from March 2015 to September 2017. Serum vitamin D was analyzed as soon as AP was diagnosed. The level of vitamin D was classified as normal (>20 ng/ml), insufficient (>10 and ≤20 ng/ml) or deficient (≤10 ng/ml). Results Among 242 patients with AP, the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency was 56.2%, and 28.5% of patients had vitamin D insufficiency. Serum vitamin D level was negatively correlated with severity indexes, such as the Atlanta classification, Computed Tomography Severity Index, Bedside Index for Severity of Acute Pancreatitis, and Ranson score. The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency increased with severity of AP according to the Atlanta classification. Vitamin D deficiency was the independent factor for predicting severe AP (OR 5.37, 95% CI 1.13–25.57, p  = 0.015) and intensive care unit admission (OR 3.09, 95% CI 1.24–7.69, p  = 0.035). Conclusion Vitamin D deficiency is associated with increased severity of AP and is a predictor for intensive care unit admission.