Deficiency in the Midst of Abundance: Xerophthalmia Case Series and Vitamin A Levels in a New England Hospital

Abstract

Purpose: To describe 3 adult cases of keratitis secondary to vitamin A deficiency (VAD) in relation to vitamin A levels Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) population and published literature. Methods: Records of 3 patients with xerophthalmia were reviewed. All serum vitamin A levels obtained at DHMC during the same time period of our 3 cases (2019–2020) were analyzed. Outcomes were examined by age and range of deficiency. Results: Three patients, with short gut syndrome, chronic esophagitis, and alcohol use disorder, presented with xerophthalmia over 1 year. Serum vitamin A levels were 6.4 μg/dL, 16.1 μg/dL, and undetectable (<5.0 μg/dL), respectively (normal: 32.5–78.0 μg/dL). Findings ranged from conjunctival keratinization to corneal perforation. Corneal cultures in patient 3 grew methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus. The ocular surface improved significantly in 2 patients following vitamin A supplementation. Two patients died during treatment. Analysis of 1596 vitamin A levels at DHMC revealed 431 patients with VAD, including 158 levels at or below those of our presented symptomatic cases. Conclusions: Vitamin A deficiency can occur in adults in high resource settings and lead to severe ocular morbidities, and is commonly associated with comorbidities such as alcohol use disorder and gastrointestinal disease. Vitamin A supplementation improved ocular findings in 2 of our patients. VAD was identified in 431 patients at DHMC over one year, indicating a surprisingly large population of patients at risk for xerophthalmia.