Peripheral polyneuropathy (PPN) is one of the main causes of morbidity in patients with
Diabetes Mellitus (DM). Studies suggest an association between serum vitamin D levels and
the presence and severity of peripheral neuropathy, but there are few studies in patients with
type 1 diabetes mellitus (DM1). The therapeutic resources for this condition are limited and VD
appears as a promising and low-cost alternative in the treatment of this complication. The
objective of this project was to evaluate the effects of vitamin D supplementation on PPN in
patients with DM1. For this, we performed a prospective and interventional study in 59 patients
with DM1. Those with levels of 25 OHD less than 30 ng / mL received 10,000 IU / day of
cholecalciferol, and those with levels greater than 30 ng / mL used 4,000 IU / day. Patients were
evaluated for PPN, before and after 12 weeks of oral administration of cholecalciferol, using
two tools, the TSS (symptom evaluation) and NDS (signal evaluation) scores. We detected that
in the general sample of 59 patients, 29 (49%) had at least one of the altered PPN scores (TSS
≥ 2 and / or NDS ≥ 3). We did not observe a significant reduction in the final values of PPN
scores at the end of cholecalciferol supplementation time (NDS: 3.4 ± 2.5 versus 2.9 ± 3, p =
0.3 and TSS: 3.4 ± 2, 4 versus 2.8 ± 3, p = 0.1). However, in a subgroup of patients (n = 20),
improvement in the score of at least one of the PPN scores was observed. Though, we have not
been able to determine the possible markers involved in PPN improvement in these patients.
We suggest that performing the analysis of genetic biomarkers may be useful to identify patients
who would benefit from the administration of cholecalciferol.
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