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Estimated serum vitamin D status, vitamin D intake, and risk of incident alopecia areata among US women

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Abstract

Studies have identified increased prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in patients with alopecia areata (AA), an autoimmune disease characterized by hair loss, but none have prospectively examined vitamin D status and incident AA. In 55,929 women in the Nurses’ Health Study (NHS), we prospectively evaluated the association between estimated vitamin D status, derived from a prediction model incorporating lifestyle determinants of serum vitamin D, and self-reported incident AA. We evaluated dietary, supplemental, and total vitamin D intake as additional exposures. Using Cox proportional hazards models, we calculated age-adjusted and multivariate hazard ratios (HR) to evaluate risk of AA. We identified 133 cases of AA over a follow-up of 12 years. The age-adjusted HR between top vs. bottom quartiles for serum vitamin D score was 0.94 (95 % CI 0.60–1.48) and the corresponding multivariate HR was 1.08 (95 % CI 0.68–1.73). There was no significant association between dietary, supplemental, or total vitamin D intake and incident AA. This study does not support a preventive role for vitamin D in the risk of developing AA.

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Acknowledgements

We are deeply appreciative to the participants and staff of the Nurses’ Health Study and to the Channing Division of Network Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School. This work was funded by National Institutes of Health (NIH) Grant UM1 CA186107 and by the Ruth Sauber Medical Scholar Award of Alpert Medical School, Brown University.

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Correspondence to Eunyoung Cho.

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Dr. Qureshi serves as a consultant for Abbvie, Amgen, Centers for Disease Control, Janssen, Merck, Novartis, and Pfizer, and is an investigator for Amgen, Regeneron, and Sanofi. Mr. Thompson, Ms. Li, Dr. Park, and Dr. Cho have no conflicts of interest.

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Thompson, J.M., Li, T., Park, M.K. et al. Estimated serum vitamin D status, vitamin D intake, and risk of incident alopecia areata among US women. Arch Dermatol Res 308, 671–676 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00403-016-1687-y

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