Prevalence of Vitamin D Deficiency and Insufficiency in Northeast Tennessee

<p> BACKGROUND:: Vitamin D deficiency is increasingly being recognized as a highly prevalent and undertreated problem. This study was conducted to determine the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency/insufficiency in hospitalized adults in northeast Tennessee. METHODS:: A prospective cohort study was conducted on 99 inpatients admitted to an internal medicine teaching service from July through October 2006 at a single private hospital in Johnson City, Tennessee. A single measurement of 25-hydroxyvitamin D was performed on all patients. RESULTS:: Of the 99 patients, 53% were vitamin D deficient or insufficient (30% deficient with a level of &lt;20 ng/mL and 23% insufficient with a level between 20&gcirc;&euro;"29.9 ng/mL). The highest frequency of deficiency was in females &lt;50 years. CONCLUSION:: Vitamin D deficiency is highly prevalent in all age groups and in both females and males in this population. Clinicians should consider measuring the vitamin D level of all inpatients on a routine basis.</p>