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The literature is split on whether vitamin D has any effect on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
A review in the -- -- points to suboptimal observational study design and a dearth of large cohort studies for the lack of clarity.
But Wim Janssens, PhD, of UZ Leuven in Belgium, and colleagues acknowledge that a lack of understanding of the role of vitamin D signaling pathways in COPD may also be skewing the results. Serum vitamin D levels alone may not tell enough about how the vitamin is working in the disease, they said.
Future studies should look at mechanisms beyond blood concentrations, with particular attention to the role of locally produced 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D and vitamin D receptor signaling in immune and structural airway cells, they wrote. An improved understanding of those pathways could help identify subgroups of COPD patients who could benefit from treatment with vitamin D.
It seems there's at least one new study of the vitamin published every day, and in the Vitamin D Blog, MedPage Today will monitor that steady stream, offering our take on clinical implications -- or limitations.
Have a tip on a vitamin D study? Email Kristina Fiore at k.fiore@medpagetoday.com. You can also catch our vitamin D feed on Twitter, .
Other coverage from the Vitamin D Blog: