title: Cord-blood 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels and risk of early-onset neonatal sepsis: a case-control study from a tertiary care center in Turkey.
abstract: Vitamin D has been linked with immunity, and the immunomodulatory role of this molecule in regulating key elements of the immune system has become an area of intense scientific investigation. We designed a case-control study to investigate whether neonates with early-onset neonatal sepsis (EONS) had lower levels of vitamin D. The primary exposure for the analysis in the study was the cord-blood level of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D). Of the 2571 live births occurring during the 18-month study period, 53 infants were admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit with suspected EONS. After clinical and laboratory confirmation, 40 newborns with EONS and 43 controls were analyzed. Cord-blood 25(OH)D levels of infants in the study group were significantly lower than that of the control group (median 12.6 ng/mL (3.1-78.9) vs. 21 (5-118); p = 0.038, respectively). In multivariate models, a low cord-blood 25(OH)D level (<30 ng/ml) was associated with an increased risk of EONS (OR = 5.6; 95% CI = 1.3-23.5).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Cord-blood 25(OH)D levels of neonates with EONS were significantly lower than that of the healthy controls, and a low level of cord-blood vitamin D was found to be associated with an increased risk of EONS. Further studies are warranted to confirm this association.
authors.affiliation: Division of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics, Fatih University Medical School, Alparslan Turkes Cd., Emek, 06510, Ankara, Turkey, nevzatcizmeci@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Mehmet Nevzat
authors.initials: MN
authors.lastname: Cizmeci
authors.forename: Mehmet Kenan
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Kanburoglu
authors.forename: Ahmet Zulfikar
authors.initials: AZ
authors.lastname: Akelma
authors.forename: Abdullah
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ayyildiz
authors.forename: Irem
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Kutukoglu
authors.forename: Dilara Dilsad
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Malli
authors.forename: Mustafa Mansur
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Tatli
mesh_terms: D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D005312:Fetal Blood / Q000737:chemistry*; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007232:Infant, Newborn, Diseases / Q000209:etiology*; D008297:Male; D008423:Maternal Age; D011247:Pregnancy; D012044:Regression Analysis; D018805:Sepsis / Q000209:etiology*; D062606:Tertiary Care Centers; D014421:Turkey; D014807:Vitamin D / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D014807:Vitamin D; C104450:25-hydroxyvitamin D