The influence of vitamin D supplementation on local and systemic inflammatory markers in periodontitis patients: A pilot study

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:sec><jats:title>Objectives</jats:title><jats:p>Vitamin D deficiency/insufficiency is a worldwide public health issue that has been linked to numerous inflammatory disorders, including periodontitis. There is increasing support for a role for adequate vitamin D levels in overall health. Populations with darker skin color have a higher prevalence of vitamin D deficiency/insufficiency and periodontitis. The purpose of this small pilot study was to investigate the influence of 12 weeks of 25(OH)D vitamin D supplementation (VDS) on mediators of systemic inflammation in dark‐skinned, periodontitis patients.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Materials and Methods</jats:title><jats:p>A total of 23 patients with moderate to severe periodontitis were randomly assigned to the vitamin D group or placebo group and received intensive single visit scaling and root planning to elicit a systemic inflammatory response.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Results</jats:title><jats:p>Vitamin D supplementation increased serum 25(OH)D levels approximately 2‐fold over baseline levels; moreover, VDS group had reduced peripheral blood CD3 and CD3+CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTLs) counts and reduced pro‐inflammatory salivary cytokines. In contrast, VDS group had higher levels of the autophagy‐related proteins and other proteins crucial for anti‐microbial autophagy in whole blood PBMCs.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Conclusion</jats:title><jats:p>In conclusion, VDS has multiple benefits for reducing systemic inflammation and promoting induction of autophagy‐related proteins related to anti‐microbial functions.</jats:p></jats:sec>