Vitamin D Decreases Beck Depression Inventory Score in Patients With Mild to Moderate Ulcerative Colitis: A Double-Blind Randomized Placebo-Controlled Trial Publisher Pubmed



Sharifi A¹ ; Vahedi H² ; Nedjat S³ ; Mohamadkhani A⁴ ; Hosseinzadeh Attar MJ⁵
Source: Journal of Dietary Supplements Published:2019

Abstract

The prevalence of depression in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is significantly more than in controls. Some studies assessed the link between vitamin D and depression. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of vitamin D on Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) score in ulcerative colitis (UC) patients. In this double-blind randomized controlled trial, 90 mild to moderate UC patients were assigned to receive a single injection of 300,000 IU vitamin D3 or 1 ml normal saline as placebo. At baseline and 3 months later, measurements of BDI score and serum 25-OH-vitamin D3 were done. Data were compared by independent sample t test, Mann–Whitney U test, and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA). Baseline BDI scores were not statistically different between the two groups (p =.4); scores decreased in the vitamin D group after the intervention (p =.023). Further subgroup analysis regarding baseline serum vitamin D levels and adjusted for baseline BDIs revealed lowering effect of vitamin D on BDI scores only in subgroup with baseline serum vitamin D levels equal to or higher than 30 ng/ml (p <.001). In this study, there was a statistically significant reduction in BDI score in mild to moderate UC patients 3 months after 300,000 IU vitamin D3 injection. Subgroup analysis showed that patients with sufficient baseline vitamin D may benefit from supplementation more than vitamin D–deficient patients, which indicates that higher serum vitamin D levels may be needed for its antidepressant effect. © 2018, © 2018 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.