Design Features of Randomized Clinical Trials of Vitamin D and Falls: A Systematic Review

• Published in: Nutrients 2018-07, Vol.10 (8), p.964
• Main Authors: Tang, Olive, Juraschek, Stephen P, Appel, Lawrence J
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Accidental Falls - prevention & control; Adults; Age Factors; Aged; Clinical trials; Design; Dietary supplements; Dietary Supplements - adverse effects; Evidence-Based Medicine - methods; Falls; falls prevention; Female; Heterogeneity; Humans; Injury prevention; Male; Medical research; Meta-analysis; Older people; Protective Factors; Randomization; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic - methods; Research Design; Review; Risk Factors; Systematic review; Treatment Outcome; trials; Upgrading; Vitamin D; Vitamin D - administration & dosage; Vitamin D - adverse effects; Vitamin D - blood; Vitamin D Deficiency - blood; Vitamin D Deficiency - diagnosis; Vitamin D Deficiency - drug therapy; Vitamin D Deficiency - epidemiology; Vitamin deficiency
• ISSN: 2072-6643; 2072-6643
• DOI: 10.3390/nu10080964

Recent guidelines have advocated against the use of vitamin D supplementation as a means to prevent falls in older adults. However, meta-analyses of the available trials have reached divergent conclusions, and the key design features of these trials have not been well characterized. We conducted a systematic review of 30 randomized trials that reported the effects of vitamin D supplements on falls. Trials were identified by reviewing references of published meta-analyses and updated with a systematic PubMed search. We assessed three key design features: (1) recruitment of participants with vitamin D deficiency or insufficiency; (2) provision of daily oral vitamin D supplementation; and (3) utilization of highly sensitive at-event falls ascertainment. The trials enrolled a median of 337 (IQR: 170-1864) participants. Four (13.3%) trials restricted enrollment to those who were at least vitamin D insufficient, 18 (60.0%) included at least one arm providing daily supplementation, and 16 (53.3%) used at-event reporting. There was substantial heterogeneity between trials, and no single trial incorporated all three key design features. Rather than concluding that vitamin D is ineffective as a means to prevent falls, these findings suggest that existing trial evidence is insufficient to guide recommendations on the use of vitamin D supplements to prevent falls.