A systematic review and meta-analysis of prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among adolescent girls in selected Indian states

Jeyakumar et al., 2019 | Nutr Health | Meta Analysis

Citation

Jeyakumar Angeline, Shinde Vidhya. A systematic review and meta-analysis of prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among adolescent girls in selected Indian states. Nutr Health. 2019-Mar;25(1):61-70. doi:10.1177/0260106018805360

Abstract

BACKGROUND:: Vitamin D deficiency among adolescents is an emerging public health priority as adolescence marks a period of rapid growth and the onset of the reproductive phase. However, lack of national prevalence data and intervention strategies is of public health concern. OBJECTIVE:: The objective of this study was to determine the pooled prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among adolescent girls in selected Indian states. METHODS:: A systematic literature review was performed using three different search engines. The searches yielded nine eligible articles. Study quality was assessed for 10 different criteria. Meta-analysis was performed to estimate pooled prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among adolescent girls and to assess the heterogeneity among selected studies. RESULTS:: A sample of n=1352 was used to study prevalence among adolescent girls. The random effects combined estimate for overall prevalence was 25.70% (95% CI 3.89-2137.9). High heterogeneity (tau2=1.71, I2=100%) was observed and seven out of nine studies showed low to moderate risk and two showed high risk of bias. The test for overall effect was observed to be Z=0.77 ( p=0.44). CONCLUSIONS:: High prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among adolescent girls identifies the need to introduce screening of adolescents and introduce proven public-health interventions such as fortification of foods to address deficiency.

Key Findings

: A sample of n=1352 was used to study prevalence among adolescent girls. The random effects combined estimate for overall prevalence was 25.70% (95% CI 3.89-2137.9). High heterogeneity (tau2=1.71, I2=100%) was observed and seven out of nine studies showed low to moderate risk and two showed high risk of bias. The test for overall effect was observed to be Z=0.77 ( p=0.44).

Outcomes Measured

  • Requires manual extraction

Population

Field Value
Population See abstract
Sample Size 1352
Age Range See abstract
Condition deficiency

MeSH Terms

  • Adolescent
  • Child
  • Female
  • Humans
  • India
  • Vitamin D
  • Vitamin D Deficiency

Evidence Classification

  • Level: Meta Analysis
  • Publication Types: Journal Article, Meta-Analysis, Systematic Review
  • Vertical: vitamin-d

Provenance


Source extracted via PubMed E-utilities API on 2026-04-09