The DOI matches its Crossref record; 31 of the 31 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Vitamin D status in autism spectrum disorders and the efficacy of vitamin D supplementation in autistic children
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a developmental disorder characterized by pervasive deficits in social interaction, impairment in verbal and non-verbal communication, and stereotyped patterns of interests and activities. Vitamin-D deficiency was previously reported in autistic children. However, the data on the relationship between vitamin D deficiency and the severity of autism are limited. METHODS: We performed a case-controlled cross-sectional analysis conducted on 122 ASD children, to assess their vitamin D status compared to controls and the relationship between vitamin D deficiency and the severity of autism. We also conducted an open trial of vitamin D supplementation in ASD children. RESULTS: Fifty-seven percent of the patients in the present study had vitamin D deficiency, and 30% had vitamin D insufficiency. The mean 25-OHD levels in patients with severe autism were significantly lower than those in patients with mild/moderate autism. Serum 25-OHD levels had significant negative correlations with Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS) scores. Of the ASD group, 106 patients with low-serum 25-OHD levels (<30 ng/ml) participated in the open label trial. They received vitamin D3 (300 IU/kg/day not to exceed 5000 IU/day) for 3 months. Eighty-three subjects completed 3 months of daily vitamin D treatment. Collectively, 80.72% (67/83) of subjects who received vitamin D3 treatment had significantly improved outcome, which was mainly in the sections of the CARS and aberrant behavior checklist subscales that measure behavior, stereotypy, eye contact, and attention span. CONCLUSION: Vitamin D is inexpensive, readily available and safe. It may have beneficial effects in ASD subjects, especially when the final serum level is more than 40 ng/ml. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: UMIN-CTR Study Design: trial Number: R000016846.
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In the citing paper
“Of 14 studies, nine reported significant differences in 25(OH)D concentrations between cases and controls [78,81,108,109,110,111,112,117,118], one borderline difference [114], and four found no significant differences among study groups [79,113,115,116].”
From Vitamin D and Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Literature Review (2016) · cites this paper as [111]
In the citing paper
“Children on the severe end of the spectrum had lower mean 25(OH)D concentration than those with mild/moderate ASD (30 ± 15 vs. 53 ± 21 nmol/L, respectively).”
From Vitamin D and Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Literature Review (2016) · cites this paper as [111]
In the citing paper
“To avoid seasonal variations in 25(OH)D concentrations, all blood samples in this study were drawn during same two months (May and June).”
From Vitamin D and Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Literature Review (2016) · cites this paper as [111]
In the citing paper
“The season of birth was taken into account in both studies but no significant differences were found in either group.”
From Vitamin D and Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Literature Review (2016) · cites this paper as [111]
In the citing paper
“Meguid et al. (2010) [81] and Saad et al. (2015) [111] also thoroughly examined all children, including both cases and controls, for medical conditions and mental disorders, and reported that two groups of Egyptian children with ASD had significantly lower levels of 25(OH)D compared to age, sex and socio-economic status matched healthy controls.”
From Vitamin D and Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Literature Review (2016) · cites this paper as [111]
In the citing paper
“and serum 25(OH)D concentrations negatively correlated with CARS scores (r = −0.50, p < 0.0001) [111].”
From Vitamin D and Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Literature Review (2016) · cites this paper as [111]
In the citing paper
“CARS scores decreased by 3.5–6.5 points in all 16 patients with final 25(OH)D >100 nmol/L, by 1.5–4.5 points in 31 out of 49 patients with 25(OH)D levels 75–97.5 nmol/L and no improvements in all 18 patients with 25(OH)D levels <75 nmol/L had improvements.”
From Vitamin D and Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Literature Review (2016) · cites this paper as [111]
In the citing paper
“With the exception of inappropriate speech subscale of ABC, all other measures (irritability, stereotypic behaviour, social withdrawal and hyperactivity) improved significantly after treatment.”
From Vitamin D and Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Literature Review (2016) · cites this paper as [111]
In the citing paper
“This study had a relatively large sample size and also limited seasonal effects by drawing all blood samples during the summer months, though the baseline and follow-up levels of 25(OH)D were not reported.”
From Vitamin D and Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Literature Review (2016) · cites this paper as [111]
In the citing paper
“Other limitations of this study were its drop-out rate of approximately 22% and the lack of a placebo or comparison arm.”
From Vitamin D and Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Literature Review (2016) · cites this paper as [111]
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“72% (67/83) of the autistic children who received vitamin D3 treatment (5000 IU/day) showed significant improvement when serum 25(OH)-D level reach 40 ng/ml[22].”
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Metadata
- Authors
- Saad, K., Abdel-rahman, A. A., Elserogy, Y. M., Al-Atram, A. A., Cannell, J. J., Bjørklund, G., Abdel-Reheim, M. K., Othman, H. A. K., El-Houfey, A. A., Abd El-Aziz, N. H. R., Abd El-Baseer, K. A., Ahmed, A. E., & Ali, A. M.
- Affiliations
- Assiut University (EG)
- Council for Nutritional and Environmental Medicine (NO)
- Dorset County Hospital (GB)
- Aswan University (EG)
- South Valley University (EG)
- Corresponding author
- Saad, Khaled
- Venue
- Nutritional Neuroscience
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2015-04-15
- Volume
- 19
- Issue
- 8
- Pages
- 346-351
- ISSN
- 1028-415X (ISSN-L)
- 1476-8305
- OpenAlex
- W1983757935
- Cited by
- 244
- References
- 31
- Citations by year
- 2026: 10 · 2025: 17 · 2024: 20 · 2023: 22 · 2022: 31 · 2021: 20 · 2020: 32 · 2019: 20 · 2018: 24 · 2017: 28 · 2016: 18 · 2015: 2
- FWCI
- 19.05
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Nutritional Neuroscience (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism › Vitamin D Research Studies
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Autism Spectrum Disorder Research
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Child Nutrition and Feeding Issues
- Keywords
- autism spectrum disorder, vitamin D deficiency, vitamin D supplementation, vitamin D3, 25-hydroxyvitamin D, autism severity, Childhood Autism Rating Scale, aberrant behavior, children with autism
- MeSH terms
- Autism Spectrum Disorder, Attention, Calcifediol, Child, Child Nutritional Physiological Phenomena, Child, Preschool, Cholecalciferol, Cross-Sectional Studies, Egypt, Eye Movements, Humans, Hyperkinesis, Male, Nutritional Status, Patient Compliance, Psychiatric Status Rating Scales, Severity of Illness Index, Social Behavior, Vitamin D Deficiency, Case-Control Studies, Dietary Supplements, Stereotypic Movement Disorder
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