Vitamin D deficiency and health-related quality of life in chronic hepatitis C

Vitamin D deficiency is an important health problem in the general population and in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC), in which the prevalence of vitamin D deficit ranges between 46% and 92%.1 In addition to its crucial role in the regulation of bone homeostasis, vitamin D has a broad range of nonskeletal effects including cardiovascular, immunomodulatory, metabolic, neuro‐muscular and brain functions.2 Recently, several studies showed that vitamin D deficiency is associated with worsening of physical and mental functions,2 thus affecting negatively quality of life in patients with chronic diseases such as chronic kidney disease3 and rheumatoid arthritis.4