Familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) is autosomal recessive chronic disease represents by recurring attacks of polyserositis, fever, and joint pain. Vitamin D deficiency in FMF children has been recently mentioned in literature and linked to delayed physical growth. Osteoporosis in FMF patients can be linked to low levels of vitamin D, too. Osteoprotegerin (OPG) might be used as an indicator for osteoporosis. Therefore, this work aimed to investigate the impact of vitamin D administration on clinical status, BMI, and bone mineral density represented by alterations in the OPG serum levels in a group of Egyptian children with FMF. This was a prospective longitudinal study carried out on 33 children, aged 4–16 years, with FMF cases. Patients were on colchicine 0.5–2 mg/day and received vitamin D3 oral drops 2800 IU/ml; each drop contains 100 IU in a dose of 600 IU/day for 6 months. The effect of vitamin D administration was evaluated clinically, anthropometrically and by assessment of serum vitamin D and osteoprotegerin at baseline and 6 months later. Serum vitamin D levels were below the normal range before intervention and showed significant improvement (p < 0.001) 6 months after intervention. Significant increase in both BMI Z scores (p < 0.05) and OPG serum levels and improvement in the clinical status as illustrated by significant decrease in the number of cases with fever, arthritis, and abdominal pain and significant decrease in the frequency and duration of the attacks (p < 0.001). Our results intensely indicate that vitamin D supplementation improved the clinical condition, BMI, and bone mineral density in children with FMF.

中文翻译：

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服用维生素 D 对患有家族性地中海热的埃及儿童样本的临床表现、体重指数和骨保护素 (OPG) 水平的影响

家族性地中海热 (FMF) 是常染色体隐性慢性疾病，表现为反复发作的多发性浆膜炎、发热和关节痛。最近文献中提到 FMF 儿童缺乏维生素 D，这与身体发育迟缓有关。FMF 患者的骨质疏松症也可能与维生素 D 水平低有关。骨保护素 (OPG) 可用作骨质疏松症的指标。因此，这项工作旨在研究维生素 D 给药对一组埃及 FMF 儿童的 OPG 血清水平改变所代表的临床状态、BMI 和骨矿物质密度的影响。这是一项前瞻性纵向研究，对 33 名年龄在 4-16 岁之间的 FMF 儿童进行了研究。患者服用秋水仙碱 0.5-2 毫克/天，并口服维生素 D3 滴剂 2800 IU/毫升；每滴含有 100 IU，剂量为 600 IU/天，持续 6 个月。维生素 D 给药的效果通过临床、人体测量学以及基线和 6 个月后血清维生素 D 和骨保护素的评估进行评估。干预前血清维生素 D 水平低于正常范围，干预后 6 个月显示出显着改善 (p < 0.001)。BMI Z 评分 (p < 0.05) 和 OPG 血清水平均显着增加，临床状态有所改善，表现为发热、关节炎和腹痛病例数显着减少，以及出现发热、关节炎和腹痛的频率和持续时间显着减少。攻击（p < 0.001）。我们的结果强烈表明，补充维生素 D 改善了 FMF 儿童的临床状况、BMI 和骨矿物质密度。