High Serum Vitamin D Inversely Associated with Rosacea Incidence

by | Oct 17, 2023 | 2023, Skin Health, Vitamin D - General

Written by Taylor Woosley, Staff Writer. Cox proportional risk regression analysis findings suggest an inverse correlation between higher serum 25OHD concentrations and the risk of rosacea incidence. 

womanRosacea is a common chronic inflammation of sebaceous gland-rich facial skin characterized by severe skin dryness, elevated pH, trans epidermal water loss, and decreased hydration levels1. It is characterized by recurrent episodes of flushing, persistent erythema, and inflammatory papules/pustules2. Rosacea etiology and pathophysiology is poorly understood but recent findings indicate that genetic and environmental components can trigger rosacea initiation3.

Additionally, rosacea involves dysregulation of the innate and adaptive immune system and chronic recurrent inflammation4. Research has shown that a growing number of dermatologic diseases have been linked to vitamin D status5. Vitamin D is an important steroid pro-hormone with the ability to regulate immune function and inhibit inflammation6.

Mao et al. conducted a cross-sectional study to prospectively analyze the association of serum 25OHD concentrations and vitamin D receptor (VDR) polymorphisms with the risk of rosacea incidence using data from the UK Biobank, a population-based cohort. 370,209 participants were recruited from the UK Biobank and had available blood samples for genotyping and biomarker analysis and had measured serum 25OHD concentrations. Serum 25OHD was categorized into 4 groups: severely deficient (<25 nmol/L), moderately deficient (25 to <50 nmol/L), insufficient (50 to <75 nmol/L), and optimal (≥75 nmol/L). Further information regarding socio-demographic status, lifestyle and dietary factors, medical history, and medication usage at baseline assessment was provided through questionnaires.

All subjects were followed up from baseline to the date of rosacea diagnosis, death, or the end of the study follow-up. A restricted cubic spline model was utilized to explore the dose-response relationship between serum 25OHD and rosacea incidence. The analysis was stratified by sex, age (<60 years and ≥60 years), BMI (<30 kg/m2 and ≥30 kg/m2), physical activity level (<120 and ≥120 MET minutes per week), 25OHD supplementation or not, and insomnia level. The overall mean 25OHD concentration among the 370,209 subjects was 49.63 nmol/L (SD = 21.07). During a follow-up of 13.22 years, 1938 incident rosacea cases occurred. Significant findings of the study are as follows:

  • Participants with serum 25OHD greater than 50 nmol/L had a multivariate-adjusted HR of 0.81 (95% CI 0.70 to 0.94, Ptrend = 0.01) compared with subjects with serum 25OHD greater than 25 nmol/L.
  • Subjects in the fourth quartile (optimal, ≥75 nmol/L) had a 20% lower risk of developing rosacea than participants in the first quartile (severely deficient, <25 nmol/L).
  • Genetic analysis findings show that serum 25OHD concentration of rs7975232 (ApaI) and rs2228570 (FokI) mutant (GG and AA) was significantly lower than the concentrations of the wild type (AA and CC) (p < 0.05).
  • Stratified analysis by sex, age, BMI, physical activity level, insomnia level, and 25OHD supplementation or not show that after adjustment the effect of serum 25OHD concentration on rosacea onset was more significant in participants younger than 60 years old (HR = 0.74, 95% CI 0.57 to 0.95) or male (R = 0.68, 95% CI 0.51 to 0.92).

Results of this prospective study using data from 370,209 participants shows that higher serum 25OHD concentrations were significantly associated with a lower risk of rosacea incidence. Further research on rosacea pathophysiology is necessary to better comprehend the effect of vitamin D on rosacea risk. Study limitations include the observational study design, the use of one measurement of vitamin D which was done at baseline, and the lack of younger subjects.

Source: Mao, Rui, Guowei Zhou, Danrong Jing, Hong Liu, Minxue Shen, and Ji Li. “Vitamin D Status, Vitamin D Receptor Polymorphisms, and the Risk of Incident Rosacea: Insights from Mendelian Randomization and Cohort Study in the UK Biobank.” Nutrients 15, no. 17 (2023): 3803.

© 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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Posted October 16, 2023.

Taylor Woosley studied biology at Purdue University before becoming a 2016 graduate of Columbia College Chicago with a major in Writing. She currently resides in Glen Ellyn, IL.

References:

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