According to a new study, vitamin D supplements should be given to patients surviving severe burns as Vitamin D speeds up the healing process; thereby helping wounds heals faster.
Vitamin D, which is synthesized naturally inside the body when sun rays come in contact with the skin, helps in cases of burning. The research was conducted by the Institute of Inflammation and Aging in Birmingham, U.K.
A burn is a wound or damage caused to the tissues of the body by heat, electricity or sunlight. Globally, burn injuries claim around 180,000 deaths each year. Non-fatal burns are a leading cause of disfigurement, hospitalization and disability. It can occur either at home or workplace. Most burns occur in children and the cost of burn treatments in children was estimated to be above 211 million USD in the US for the year 2000.
With burn injuries, there is always a risk of infection. Infection may result in a life-threatening condition, known as sepsis. There is enough and growing evidence that vitamin D helps fight infections.
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Low vitamin D is often linked to more deaths in critically ill people. In this study, researchers measured the pace of recovery among patients with severe burns over a period of one year and matched the same with their levels of vitamin D.
Burns reduce the level of vitamin D :
As compared to healthy individuals, people with burns have lower levels of vitamin D. For People, who got burnt and had higher levels of vitamin D, had their wounds healed faster with less scarring.
After the burn, if the patients are given vitamin D supplement infection can be prevented and the process of wound healing can be made significantly faster.
In burnt individuals, low vitamin D level poses risk of life-threatening situations like infection, mortality and delay in wound healing. Vitamin D levels should not be overlooked by doctors as it plays an important role in wound healing.