Publication date: Sep 16, 2025
Vitamin D deficiency affects bone health and immune function, especially in children. While universal screening is not cost-effective, targeted screening and supplementation strategies have proven effective. This study evaluates the effectiveness of Romania’s National Vitamin D Screening Programme in detecting vitamin D deficiency in paediatric patients, while also accounting for the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. This retrospective observational study assessed the effectiveness of Romania’s National Vitamin D Screening Initiative in detecting vitamin D deficiency among children admitted to the Clinical Emergency Hospital for Children “Louis Țurcanu”, Timișoara, from January 2018 to December 2024. Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels were analysed in 3596 tested patients out of 22,353 total admitted patients, to evaluate trends from before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Patients aged 0-18 with at least one admission were included, regardless of diagnosis. Patients in ICU, surgical departments, non-Romanian citizens, and those with life-threatening conditions were excluded. Logistic regression analysis was used to assess programme impact and risk factors for vitamin D insufficiency. The study population had a mean age of 5. 36 years, with 53. 57% male patients. Patient admissions dropped significantly during pandemic years (mean of 2057 annually in 2020-2022 vs. 4045. 5 in pre-/post-pandemic years). Vitamin D insufficiency (
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Semantics
| Type | Source | Name |
|---|---|---|
| drug | DRUGBANK | Vitamin D |
| disease | MESH | COVID-19 Pandemic |
| disease | MESH | Vitamin D deficiency |
| disease | MESH | Emergency |
| disease | MESH | Vitamin deficiency |