TORONTO – Low vitamin D levels were associated with more psychotic features in mentally ill adolescents, based on data from 104 teens.
In previous studies, vitamin D deficiency has been linked with seasonal affective disorder, schizophrenia, and depression, said Dr. Barbara L. Gracious of the Ohio State University, Columbus, and her colleagues.
Dr. Gracious reported at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry on 104 consecutive teens seen for acute or partial hospital stays for psychiatric symptoms during an 18-month period. The average age of the patients was 15 years; 27% were male, and 73% were white.
Overall, 72% of the study population had low vitamin D levels, defined as 25-OHD levels less than 30 ng/mL, and 34% were vitamin D deficient, defined as 25-OHD levels less than 20 ng/mL. By comparison, 9% of a cohort of teens from the NHANES (National Health and Nutrition Survey) were vitamin D deficient, the researchers noted.
Psychotic features were observed in 40% of the teens with low vitamin D levels and 16% of those with normal vitamin D levels, a statistically significant difference. Black ethnicity was associated with vitamin D deficiency, but vitamin D–deficient black teens were not significantly more likely than vitamin D–deficient white teens to exhibit psychotic features.
No studies indicate that vitamin D deficiency is a causative factor in psychosis.
Dr. Gracious is a consultant for Johnson & Johnson. None of her coauthors reported any financial conflicts. The study was supported by grants from several sources including the National Institutes of Health, the Ohio State University, and the University of Rochester (N.Y.).