Influence of Vitamin D Deficiency on Rheumatoid Arthritis Course

The article deals with the influence of vitamin D deficiency on the course of rheumatoid arthritis. It encloses the review and the results of own researches. It was found that 54.9 % of the patients with rheumatoid arthritis had vitamin D deficiency, and 37.6 % — insufficiency. Serum 25(OH)D level was significantly lower in patients with the rheumatoid arthritis of III grade compared with the patients with the minimal activity (16.55 ± 9.26 vs 22.59 ± 9.74 ng/ml, p < 0.05). There was determined the correlation between serum 25(OH)D level and disease activity parameters: ESR (r = –0.26; p < 0.05), DAS28-ESR (r = –0.36; p < 0.001), and CRP (r = –0.24; p < 0.05). Vitamin D deficiency can be an important factor for worsening of rheumatoid arthritis. The effect of vitamin D supplementation in the complex therapy is needed to determine if a causal relationship exists