Vitamin D Deficiency at Hospital Admission With Community-Acquired Pneumonia is Associated With Increased Risk of Mortality: A Prospective Cohort Study

BACKGROUND: A deficient vitamin D status is linked to increased risk of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) and both short- and long-term mortality. Given small sizes of previous studies and lack of adjustment for key confounders, we aimed to investigate the association between vitamin D status (sufficient, insufficiency, or deficiency) and mortality risk in adults hospitalized with CAP.

METHODS: This study, nested within the Surviving Pneumonia Study at Copenhagen University Hospital-North Zealand, Denmark, included adults hospitalized with CAP between 2019 and 2022. Vitamin D status was assessed using serum 25(OH)D concentrations, categorizing participants as sufficient (≥50 nmol/L), insufficient (25-<50 nmol/L), or deficient (<25 nmol/L). Logistic regression was used to assess mortality risk. Covariates included age, sex, Charlson comorbidity index, CURB-65, smoking history, and BMI.

RESULTS: Among 514 participants, 29 (5.6%) and 130 (25.3%) had deficient and insufficient vitamin D status, respectively. Participants with deficient vitamin D status were younger, and more than 50% were current smokers. Vitamin D deficiency was associated with higher 90-day (OR: 3.50, 95% CI 1.01; 12.21) and 180-day (OR: 3.27, 95% CI 1.04; 10.25) mortality risk compared with participants with sufficient vitamin D status, while no difference was observed between the sufficient and insufficient group. No differences were observed for in-hospital or 30-day mortality.

CONCLUSIONS: Participants with deficient vitamin D status were younger and faced higher mortality risk despite milder disease at admission. Given that vitamin D deficiency may relate to poorer health habits and low levels of other micronutrients, trials on tailored micronutrient supplementation during acute conditions like CAP could be considered.