Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels in children with recurrent tonsillitis living in Milan

Involvement of 25-hydroxyvitamin D in the etiopathogenesis of tonsillar disease in children is still debated; this study assesses possible differences in serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels between 309 Caucasian children (58.1% males; mean age 55.7 ± 31.0 months) living in Milan with a history of recurrent tonsillitis (RT) and healthy controls. Mean serum 25(OH)D levels were significantly reduced in the children with a history of RT (22.0 ± 8.7 ng/mL vs 24.6 ± 7.8 ng/mL; p=0.03), and the proportion of children with insufficient or deficient serum 25(OH)D levels was higher in the RT group (81.5% and 6.5% respectively) than in the control group (75.1% and 3.5%) (not significant). The multivariable model created to test the independent association between serum 25(OH)D levels and a history of RT after adjusting for age and season showed that the association was not significant. Our study failed to find any significant reduction in serum 25(OH)D levels after adjustment for age and season in a case series of children with RT in comparison with healthy controls, which suggests that vitamin D does not play a relevant role in the etiology of pediatric tonsillar infections.