What you need to know about Vitamin D

JT Smith, et al. at the Brigham hospital conducted a study which correlated vitamin D deficiencies
 with certain types of foot and ankle fractures. 

In our practice, we may order Vit D 25 studies on any patient presenting with signs of pedal osteopenea, with or without a history of foot or ankle fractures or sprains, who demonstrate a very light bone mineralization pattern on a plain radiograph. This is not age dependent, and even though most female patients are more likely to present in this manner post menopausal age, we have found this in both male and female patients in their early thirties.

In almost all cases, if we see it in the foot, the lab tests come back positive for a vitamin D deficiency globally in the body and we may initiate Vitamin D supplementation along with primary care and nutritional consultation.


If the levels are below 20, we prescribe 50,000 units of Vit D to be taken one per week along with a daily
OTC supplement of three to five thousand units of vitamin D 3 to be taken daily. Because the research in how to raise the levels and whether doing such will prevent foot injuries is scant, it is likely that different
doctors will have different protocols for raising vitamin D levels in order to prevent pedal osseous pathology.