Role of Vitamin D in Prevention of Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever and Dengue Shock Syndrome

Dengue is an arthropod-borne disease, found in tropical and sub-tropical climates worldwide, mostly in urban and semi-urban areas. Unfortunately, there is no intervention available to stop dengue severity. Despite significant efforts into developing vaccine and antiviral drug for dengue fever over the years, numerous challenges remain before an efficient, safe vaccine and antiviral drug. Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever (DHF) and Dengue Shock Syndrome (DSS) are a serious form of dengue infection that can escalate in a non-negligible percentage of febrile patients. Factors responsible for this deterioration are weakly understood. The host's genetics and secondary infections from novel dengue serotypes are obvious risk factors. The dietary state of the host has also been emphasized as a potentially important predictor of progression because some nutrients have potent immunomodulatory effects. Vitamin D is particularly important as it has ability to control immunological processes, including the downregulation of pro-inflammatory Th1 activity, which has been linked to the pathophysiology of severe dengue. There is a preliminary study regarding the effectiveness of vitamin D in the prevention of DHF and DSS in human. But a larger study is needed to prove its utility. The objective of the study is to determine the role of Vitamin D in efficacy, safety and dose response in the prevention of DHF and DSS. This will be an open-label Phase-2 Randomized controlled trial (RCT) which will be carried out in Dengue cell, Emergency Department and Outpatient Department (OPD) of Medicine Department in Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, Dhaka. It will be conducted from September 2023 to August 2024 enrolling about 120 patients from Dengue cell, Emergency Department and OPD of Medicine Department BSMMU. The duration of the study will be one year. All the investigations will be done in BSMMU. Patients will be followed up by phone call and physical visit. Those with severe symptoms wi