Background: Vitamin D deficiency is widely prevalent among the elderly, posing significant health risks. This study aims to determine the global prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in the elderly.
Methods: A systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted, examining databases including Scientific Information Database (SID), Medline (PubMed), ScienceDirect, Scopus, Embase, and Google Scholar until January 2023. The publication bias of the studies was assessed using the I2 test of heterogeneity and the Egger test.
Results: The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency, defined as levels below 20 ng or 50 nmol was found to be 59.7% (95% CI 45.9-72.1). Furthermore, a review of six studies involving 6748 elderly individuals showed a prevalence of 27.5% (95% CI 21.8-34.1) for deficiency defined between 20 and 30 ng or 50-75 nmol. Additionally, a meta-analysis of seven studies with a sample size of 6918 elderly individuals reported a prevalence of 16% (95% CI 10.2-24.1) for deficiency defined above 30 nmol or 75 nmol.
Conclusion: The results of the present study reveal that the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among the elderly is high and requires the attention of health policymakers at the World Health Organization to prioritize extensive information dissemination and screening to mitigate the adverse effects on their quality of life.
Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s43465-023-01089-w.
Keywords: Elderly; Meta-analysis; Quality of life; Vitamin D.
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