RESEARCH ARTICLE
Serum Vitamin D Levels at Different Stages of Acne Vulgaris Patients Treated with Isotretinoin: A Prospective Study
Mohammed Al-Dhubaibi1, Ghadah Alhetheli2, *, Adel Alsenaid1, Ahmed Abd Elneam3, 4
Article Information
Identifiers and Pagination:
Year: 2021Volume: 15
First Page: 11
Last Page: 15
Publisher ID: TODJ-15-11
DOI: 10.2174/1874372202115010011
Article History:
Received Date: 16/12/2020Revision Received Date: 11/2/2021
Acceptance Date: 15/2/2021
Electronic publication date: 23/02/2021
Collection year: 2021
open-access license: This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (CC-BY 4.0), a copy of which is available at: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode. This license permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Abstract
Background:
Acne vulgaris is a common chronic inflammatory skin disorder of pilosebaceous units. Isotretinoin (13-cis retinoic acid) is the most effective multifunctional treatment for moderate-to-severe and nodulocystic acne. Vitamin D plays a role in the immune system, and its deficiency might contribute to the pathogenesis of acne.
Objective:
To investigate whether isotretinoin improves serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels in acne vulgaris patients.
Methods:
This prospective cohort study included 68 patients with acne vulgaris. Lipid profiles, liver function tests, and serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25 (OH) D] levels were measured at baseline and three months after starting isotretinoin treatment.
Results:
There was a significant increase in serum vitamin D levels three months after starting isotretinoin treatment in mild acne patients (P=0.0003).
Conclusion:
Vitamin D levels are altered in acne vulgaris. Isotretinoin therapy is associated with an increase in vitamin D levels, which was statistically significant in mild acne patients. Considering the role of vitamin D in acne, effective treatment with isotretinoin might highlight vitamin D as a possible target for acne therapy or as a biomarker for disease activity and remission.