Vol. 1 No. 7 (2021)
Health Technology Reviews

Vitamin D Supplementation for the Prevention and/or Treatment of Cardiovascular Disease, Cancer, and Other Conditions in Residents of Long-Term Care Facilities

Published July 27, 2021

Key Messages

  • The results of 1 systematic review suggest that supplementation with vitamin D may provide some benefit for cancer-related mortality in older adults. It is unclear whether there is a benefit of vitamin D supplementation for all-cause mortality; however, no benefit was found for cardiovascular disease mortality, cardiovascular disease events, or cancer incidence.
  • There is limited and mixed evidence on the effectiveness of vitamin D supplementation for dementia and mild cognitive impairment in older adults.
  • The results of 1 systematic review suggest that vitamin D supplementation may provide protection against acute respiratory infections in the overall population; however, this result was not significant in the subgroup of patients older than 65 years.
  • No evidence-based guidelines were identified regarding vitamin D supplementation for the prevention and/or treatment of cardiovascular disease, cancer, and other conditions in elderly patients residing in long-term care facilities.