title: Vitamin D status in patients with MS is negatively correlated with depression, but not with fatigue.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Depressive symptoms and fatigue are frequent and disabling symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS). Depression and fatigue have been associated with a poor vitamin D status, and a poor vitamin D status is often found in MS.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  Assess whether vitamin D status contributes to depressive symptoms and fatigue in MS.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients with MS that participated in previous studies in which depression and fatigue were assessed and of whom serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) levels were available within a timeframe of less than one half-life of 25(OH)D were included. Depression and fatigue were assessed with the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and the Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Fifty-nine patients were included. Mean scores of fatigue and depression were 14.6 (SD 4.2) and 6.2 (SD 4.4), respectively. The mean vitamin D status was 62.3 nm (SD 27.8). Vitamin D status correlated negatively with depression (r=-0.326, P=0.006). No significant correlation was found between vitamin D status and fatigue. In a multiple regression model, vitamin D status was not a significant contributor to depression, after controlling for age Expanded Disability Status Scale score and fatigue (P=0.078). Alternatively, depression and fatigue did not contribute to vitamin D status.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study shows a negative correlation between vitamin D status and depressive symptoms in patients with MS. Although multiple confounders exist, we observed an indication that vitamin D status might contribute to the presence of depressive symptoms in MS. Therefore, further studies on vitamin D in MS should include depressive symptoms as outcome measures to confirm these findings.
authors.affiliation: School for Mental Health and Neuroscience, Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Knippenberg
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Bol
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Damoiseaux
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hupperts
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Smolders
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015897:Comorbidity / Q000639:trends; D003863:Depression / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015673:Fatigue Syndrome, Chronic / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D014807:Vitamin D / Q000097:blood; D014808:Vitamin D Deficiency / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D014807:Vitamin D