Vitamin D Benefits Patients with Chronic Hives
A new study finds the use of vitamin D as an add-on therapy could provide some relief for patients with chronic hives, a condition that has no known cure and limited treatment options.
Over the course of a 2-year study, researchers from the University of Nebraska Medical Center analyzed the role of over-the-counter vitamin D3 as a supplemental treatment for chronic hives. On a daily basis throughout 12 weeks, 38 study participants took a triple-drug combination of allergy medications—1 prescription and 2 over-the-counter drugs—and 1 vitamin D3, an over-the-counter supplement. Half of the patients took 600 IUs of vitamin D3, and the other half took 4,000 IUs. Participants had suffered from 5 years to 20 years with severe hives. Some had undergone therapy while others had not.
The UNMC researchers found that patients in both groups saw symptoms decreased by 33 percent in just 1 week. At the end of 3 months, however, the group taking 4,000 IUs of vitamin D3 experienced an additional 40 percent decrease in the severity of their hives. The low-vitamin D3 treatment group saw no further improvement after the first week. Patients taking the higher dose had less severe hives. This group had fewer hives and experienced a drop in the number of days a week they had hives.
The study authors described the results as a “significant improvement,” noting that higher dosing of vitamin D3 could be considered a safe and potentially beneficial therapy. The investigators added, however, that this treatment is not a cure, although it shows benefits when added to anti-allergy medications.
Chronic hives is “a frustrating disease for patients, and can be difficult to treat,” says Jill Poole, MD, associate professor in the UNMC department of internal medicine, and principal investigator in the study.
Poole suggests that primary care physicians consider a 3-month trial of vitamin D 4000, in addition to anti-allergy treatment for this group. In the UNMC study, “vitamin D was [found to be] safe, and it is inexpensive and readily available,” she says.
However, “caution should be applied to patients with chronic kidney disease or calcium metabolism problems [such as] hypercalcemia or parathyroid disease,” adds Poole, “as these patients were excluded from the study.”
—Mark McGraw
Reference
Rorie A, Goldner W, et al. Beneficial role for supplemental vitamin D3 treatment in chronic urticaria: a randomized study. Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. 2014.