Staph infection reduced 50 percent when have more than 30 ng of vitamin D – Aug 2011

Staphylococcus aureus nasal carriage is associated with serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels, gender and smoking status. The Tromsø Staph and Skin Study.

Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis. 2011 Aug 3.
Olsen K, Falch BM, Danielsen K, Johannessen M, Ericson Sollid JU, Thune I, Grimnes G, Jorde R, Simonsen GS, Furberg AS.
Department of Microbiology and Infection Control, University Hospital of North Norway, 9038, Tromsø, Norway, karina.olsen at unn.no.

Vitamin D induces the expression of antimicrobial peptides with activity against Staphylococcus aureus. Thus, we studied the association between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) and S. aureus nasal colonization and carriage. Nasal swabs, blood samples and clinical data from 2,115 women and 1,674 men, aged 30-87 years, were collected in the Tromsø Staph and Skin Study 2007-08, as part of the population-based sixth Tromsø Study. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were stratified by recognized risk factors for S. aureus carriage: sex, age and smoking. In non-smoking men, we observed a 6.6% and 6.7% decrease in the probability of S. aureus colonization and carriage, respectively, by each 5 nmol/l increase in serum 25(OH)D concentration (P?<?0.001 and P?=?0.001), and serum 25(OH)D?>?59 nmol/l and ?75 nmol/l as thresholds for ~30% and ~50% reduction in S. aureus colonization and carriage.

In non-smoking men aged 44-60 years, the odds ratio for S. aureus colonization was 0.44 (95% confidence interval, 0.28-0.69) in the top tertile of serum 25(OH)D versus the bottom tertile.

In women and smokers there were no such associations.
Our study supports that serum vitamin D is a determinant of S. aureus colonization and carriage.

PMID: 21811869

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Summary

• 6% reduction in Staphylococcus colonization for each 2 ng increase in vitamin D
• 50% reduction in Staphylococcus colonization when > 30 ng of vitamin D

From WikiPedia

“S. aureus can cause a range of illnesses from minor skin infections, such as pimples, impetigo, boils (furuncles), cellulitis folliculitis, carbuncles, scalded skin syndrome, and abscesses,
to life-threatening diseases such as pneumonia, meningitis, osteomyelitis, endocarditis, toxic shock syndrome (TSS), chest pain, bacteremia, and sepsis.
Its incidence is from skin, soft tissue, respiratory, bone, joint, endovascular to wound infections.
It is still one of the five most common causes of nosocomial infections, often causing postsurgical wound infections.
Each year, some 500,000 patients in American hospitals contract a staphylococcal infection.[4]”

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See also Vitamin D Life

• Items in Immunity and vitamin D 189 items
• Additional 4 ng of vitamin D reduced chance of infection by 7 percent – June 2011
• All items in Cost Savings and vitamin D 138 items
• HMOs will save millions of dollars with vitamin D
• MRSA inpatient cost 2X higher if less than 20 ng vitamin D – June 2011
  • MRSA = Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus