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Self-reported prescribing behaviour of vitamin D prophylaxis in healthy children by Belgian paediatricians

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 78, pages 295–300 (2024)Cite this article

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Abstract

There is currently no consensus on the guidelines for vitamin D prophylaxis in healthy children. The purpose of this study was to investigate the prescribing behaviour of vitamin D prophylaxis among Belgian paediatricians. Between June and September 2022, a questionnaire was distributed by email to all Belgian paediatricians who are a member of at least one of three scientific or professional organisations, as well as to the heads of every Belgian paediatric or neonatal hospital ward. We analysed 426 completed questionnaires. All regions, age categories and subspecialties were represented. Vitamin D prophylaxis is always or frequently recommended by 98% of paediatricians. Fifty-eight per cent of paediatricians advise vitamin D prophylaxis up to the age of six years and 66% of paediatricians advise a daily dose of 400 IU. In nearly every hospital in Belgium (96%), there is a specific protocol for vitamin D prophylaxis for newborns; but not for the paediatric unit (only 30%). Nearly all Belgian paediatricians prescribe vitamin D prophylaxis to infants. Although not recommended by guidelines, 25(OH)D is frequently measured by paediatricians. Practices regarding duration and dosing of vitamin D prophylaxis show large variability. Most neonatal wards do have a protocol, whereas most paediatric wards do not.

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Fig. 1: Recommendation of vitamin D suppletion in healthy children by Belgian paediatricians.
Fig. 2: Recommended daily dosage of vitamin D prophylaxis.
Fig. 3: Recommended duration of vitamin D prophylaxis.

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Data availability

Our data was collected via REDCap. The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Paediatrician in training, MD, Paediatric Intensive Care Unit, University Hospital Ghent, 9000, Ghent, East-Flanders, Belgium

    Charlotte De Crem

  2. Paediatric Gastroenterology, University Hospital Ghent, 9000, Ghent, East-Flanders, Belgium

    Myriam Van Winckel

  3. Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), UZ Brussel, KidZ Health Castle, Brussels, Belgium

    Yvan Vandenplas

  4. General Paediatrics, Hospital Network Antwerp, 2170, Merksem, Antwerp, Belgium

    Anke Raaijmakers

  5. Department of Paediatric Nephrology, Sydney Children’s Hospital, Randwick, NSW, Australia

    Anke Raaijmakers

  6. UNSW School of Women’s and Children’s Health, Randwick Clinical Campus, Randwick, NSW, Australia

    Anke Raaijmakers

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  1. Charlotte De Crem
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  3. Yvan Vandenplas
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  4. Anke Raaijmakers
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Contributions

Conceptualisation: CDC, MVW, AR, YV. Methodology: CDC, MVW, AR, YV. Software: CDC. Validation: CDC, MVW, AR, YV. Formal Analysis: CDC. Investigation: CDC, MVW, AR, YV. Resources: does not apply. Data Curation: CDC, MVW, AR, YV. Writing – Original Draft Preparation: CDC. Writing - Review & Editing: CDC, MVW, AR, YV. Visualisation: CDC. Supervision: MVW, AR, YV. Project Administration: CDC, MVW, AR, YV.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Anke Raaijmakers.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

Ethical approval

The study was conducted according to the guidelines of the Declaration of Helsinki and approved by the Ethics Committee of University of Ghent (BC-11765, Belgium, 21 March 2022).

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De Crem, C., Van Winckel, M., Vandenplas, Y. et al. Self-reported prescribing behaviour of vitamin D prophylaxis in healthy children by Belgian paediatricians. Eur J Clin Nutr 78, 295–300 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41430-023-01387-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41430-023-01387-4

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