Effectiveness of vitamin D-based therapy in reducing clinical impact of Covid-19 patients: A systematic review

Cases of the COVID-19 pandemic have spread throughout the world and caused a high mortality rate. This virus is self-limiting, so the healing process is related to the immune system. One of the medical therapies given to hospitalized COVID-19 patients is vitamin D-based therapy to boost the immune system against the COVID-19 virus. This paper aimed to determine the effectiveness of vitamin D-based therapy to reduce the clinical impact on COVID-19 patients. The clinical impacts observed in this systematic review were the length of hospital stay, length in the ICU stay, cure rate, severity, mortality rate, and signs of inflammation. A literature search was carried out on the Scopus, Sciencedirect, and PUBMED databases. Search articles using the keyword vitamin D therapy in COVID-19 patients. The final result of the search found 6 articles that met the specified inclusion and exclusion criteria. Vitamin D in its active form (1,25(OH)2D3) can enhance chemotaxis, phagocytic response, and production of antimicrobials such as cathelicidin from macrophages as a series of innate immune responses. Administration of vitamin D-based therapy can also reduce the severity, decrease pro-inflammatory cytokines, and mortality in COVID-19 patients. The paper shows that vitamin D-based therapy can reduce the clinical impact in COVID-19 patients.