Researchers Say Knee Osteoarthritis Patients Need Vitamin D

Researchers say that correcting low vitamin D levels can provide pain relief in patients with knee pain. Research has also suggested that too little or too much vitamin D supplementation may offer limited results, so a physician knowledgeable in helping to correct joint pain is important.

Doctors say Vitamin D helps pain syndromes

Research on vitamin D suggests a correlation between low blood levels and developing osteoarthritis.

A March 2020 study (1) suggests that vitamin D levels, specifically low levels of Vitamin D may influence the development of knee osteoarthritis. What the researchers of this study did was to look at patients, about 54 years old, their levels of vitamin D, and the stages of knee osteoarthritis they were suffering from. What did the study reveal? A significant association between serum vitamin D and developing knee osteoarthritis. Based on vitamin D levels, most of patients with vitamin D deficiency were in stages III and IV osteoarthritis. The findings of the study suggest that vitamin D deficiency should be considered in patients with osteoarthritis and treated accordingly.

A physician knowledgeable in educating patients in the realistic understanding of vitamin D supplementation is important

That a physician knowledgeable in helping to correct joint pain is important is suggested in many studies. A July 2019 study in the American College of Rheumatology’s journal Open rheumatology (2) suggested that, “Given the multiple skeletal and extraskeletal benefits of vitamin D supplementation in elderly people, the issue of vitamin D supplementation in knee osteoarthritis requires further study to elucidate the dosage and duration of treatment that provides the most effective therapeutic effect.” In other words, the best dosage and for how long.

How much supplementation?

The amount of recommended vitamin D needs to be discussed with your doctor. General recommendations from a recent study (3) were offered based on these findings among study participants:

One hundred and seventy-five knee osteoarthritis patients with low levels of vitamin D received 40,000 IU vitamin D2  per week for six months.

Baseline vitamin D status, 59% of patients had vitamin D insufficiency (very low), and 41 had vitamin D deficiency (low).

After vitamin D2 supplementation for six months, 57% of patients had vitamin D sufficiency and 43% had vitamin D insufficiency.

The levels of vitamin D improved.After these improvements, the study researchers observed:

Patient quality of life and pain both improved significantly from baseline to the six-month time point. Knee osteoarthritis patients demonstrated significant improvement in physical performance measurements.

Is Vitamin D all you need?

It is no secret that we support the use of many supplements and nutrients to support the immune system. The keyword here is support. Supplements on their own will typically not reverse years of knee degenerative disease.For the long run, we help our patients understand food choices and their impact on the body. Not only nutritional supplementation but to also help our patients maintain their weight for a lifetime.

If you would like to explore more information, please contact our office so we can start a conversation with you.

Related articles:

Researchers Say Knee Osteoarthritis Patients Need Vitamin D

Researchers Say Knee Osteoarthritis Patients Need Vitamin D

Researchers Say Knee Osteoarthritis Patients Need Vitamin D

References

1 Anari H, Enteshari-Moghaddam A, Abdolzadeh Y. Association between serum Vitamin D deficiency and Knee Osteoarthritis. Mediterr J Rheumatol. 2020;30(4):216-219. Published 2020 Mar 31. doi:10.31138/mjr.30.4.216
2 Heidari B, Babaei M. Therapeutic and Preventive Potential of Vitamin D Supplementation in Knee Osteoarthritis. ACR Open Rheumatol. 2019;1(5):318–326. Published 2019 Jul 3. doi:10.1002/acr2.1042
3 Manoy P, Yuktanandana P, Tanavalee A, Anomasiri W, Ngarmukos S, Tanpowpong T, Honsawek S. Vitamin D Supplementation Improves Quality of Life and Physical Performance in Osteoarthritis Patients. Nutrients. 2017 Jul 26;9(8):799